Model Validation Lead

SBS Skipton Building Society; Skipton; Hybrid; GBP 40,000 - 67,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Annual discretionary bonus

25 days annual leave + bank holidays +

Employer pension contributions up to

Private medical insurance

Wellbeing app and lifestyle perks

Job summary

Skipton Building Society is seeking a Model Validation Lead to independently validate strategically important models, delivering robust challenge and assurance. You’ll communicate findings to senior stakeholders and support governance across the organisation.

The role offers blended working; 3 days in Skipton office and 2 days from home, with a 35-hour week and a salary of £66,800 per annum. A closing date is 24 September 2026.

Qualifications

• Strong understanding of regulatory environment including Capital frameworks (Standardised/IRB), IFRS 9 and Model Risk Regulation (SS1/23).
• Proven experience validating complex statistical models using independent review, performance testing and challenger models.
• Advanced analytical skills with Excel, SAS and SQL; willingness to learn new tools.
• Excellent communication and influencing skills for non-technical audiences.
• Deep expertise across the data science lifecycle, assessing design, performance and risk.
• Degree in mathematical, statistical, data science or analytical field.

Responsibilities

• Lead independent validation of strategically important models with robust challenge and assurance.
• Assess model performance across the full lifecycle including data quality, design, implementation, monitoring and governance.
• Produce validation reports and present findings and insights to senior stakeholders and governance committees.
• Build trusted relationships across the business and translate complex concepts into clear messages.
• Provide expert data science and model risk guidance to analytics teams.
• Support regulatory compliance, audits and model governance aligning with standards.

Skills

Regulatory knowledge

Model validation experience

Communication skills

Data science lifecycle expertise

Education

Degree in mathematical, statistical, data science or analytical field

Tools

Excel

SAS

SQL

Job description

Hours: This role is for a permanent position working full time 35 hours per week. For most of our roles there's the option of blended working, which means we mix working from home and meeting in person with three days a week in our Skipton office and two days a week from home.

Salary: £66,800 Per Annum

Closing Date: Thu, 24 Sept 2026

Play a pivotal role in providing confidence in the models that shape key business decisions. As our Model Validation Lead, you'll be at the forefront of ensuring that critical models are robust, reliable, and fit for purpose. Combining technical expertise with strong commercial insight, you'll deliver independent validation and assurance across a diverse range of complex models and algorithms, influencing senior stakeholders through clear reporting, impactful presentations, and trusted recommendations. If you're passionate about model risk, analytics, and making a meaningful impact across the organisation, we'd love to hear from you.

What You’ll Do

• Lead the independent validation of strategically important and highly material models, delivering robust challenge, testing and assurance.
• Assess model performance across the full model lifecycle, including data quality, design, implementation, monitoring and governance.
• Produce clear validation reports and present findings, recommendations and insights to senior stakeholders and governance committees.
• Build trusted relationships across the business, translating complex technical concepts into clear and actionable messages.
• Provide expert data science and model risk guidance to support analytical teams.
• Support regulatory compliance, audits and model governance activities, ensuring alignment with evolving industry standards and requirements.

What You’ll Need

• Strong understanding of the prudential regulatory environment, including Regulatory Capital frameworks (Standardised and IRB), IFRS 9, and most importantly Model Risk Regulation (SS1/23).
• Proven experience validating complex statistical models using a range of techniques, including independent review, performance testing and challenger model development.
• Advanced analytical skills with strong proficiency in Excel, SAS and SQL, alongside a passion for learning new tools and technologies.
• Excellent communication and influencing skills, with the ability to translate complex technical concepts into clear, impactful messages for non-technical audiences.
• Deep expertise across the full data science lifecycle, with the ability to critically assess model design, performance and risk using a blend of statistical rigour, commercial awareness and regulatory knowledge.
• Degree level qualification in a mathematical, statistical, data science or other highly analytical discipline.

What’s In It For You

• Your work matters. And the way we reward you matters, too. At Skipton, we offer pay and benefits that really do make life better, together with a genuine thank you for making a difference.
• Annual discretionary bonus scheme
• 25 days standard annual leave + bank holidays + rising 1 day per year of service to a max of 30 days
• Matching employer pension contribution (up to 10% per annum)
• Colleague Mortgages and access to Skipton products and services at discounted rates
• Flexible working to help balance your commitments
• Private medical insurance, health and wellbeing app, volunteering opportunities, cycle-to-work scheme, discounted gym memberships
• Lifestyle perks such as a Home and Tech voucher, which can be used at John Lewis, Currys, and IKEA

About Skipton.

Our story began in 1853 in Skipton, North Yorkshire. Today, you’ll find us across England and Scotland, from Aberdeen to Plymouth. We help over a million members put down roots, save for what matters, and feel good about their money. As a mutual, they own us, so everything we do is for them. You'll feel that same fairness and purpose in how all 2,500 of our colleagues work together, too It all means that life at Skipton is more exciting than you imagine.

What it's like to work here

Life at Skipton

We talk and we listen to each other. And we make decisions as a team. That way, you get all the support you need to do work that works for everyone. For most of our roles there's the option of blended working, which means we mix working from home and meeting in person, with three days a week in our Skipton office. We also value what everyone brings to Skipton. And we create a fair place where you can be yourself. Our colleague networks play a big role in this. They connect people with similar life experiences and make our workplace warm, friendly, inclusive and welcoming. It’s not just our members who are important to us. You are, too. Lots of organisations talk about wellbeing, but they don’t always back it up. As a mutual, we put people first. And that includes the people who work here. So, when we say we care about your wellbeing, we mean it. Wellbeing isn't just one thing. It’s about feeling good, having energy, and being able to be yourself and perform at your best. That’s why we offer help for your mental and physical health across five key areas. What’s more, it’s help that you can actually use too - not just read about.

You don't need to tick every box - we look for people who care about our members and who want to grow at the same time. The rest can follow.

Not just another building society. Not just another job. We’re the fourth biggest building society in the UK and what makes us a bit different is that we're a mutual organisation. We don't have shareholders; we're owned by our members. Our colleagues say Skipton's a great place to work, and you could be one of them, bringing with you new ideas on how we can keep customers at the heart of what we do. Whatever your background, and whatever your goals, we’ll help you take the next step towards a better future. Why? It’s just the way we are. We care about sustainability and look to the long-term for both colleagues and customers. And we know that when we build better futures as individuals, we build better futures as a business.