SC Cleared Lead Backend Engineer for Mission-Critical Systems

Sanderson Government and Defence; Greater London; On-site; GBP 100,000 - 140,000; Full time

Job summary

Sanderson Government and Defence is seeking an experienced Lead/Principal Software Engineer to design and deliver secure, backend platforms and services for defence and government customers. You will work in cloud‑native, Agile environments, building scalable, mission‑critical systems across public and private clouds.

Active SC Clearance is mandatory. The role emphasizes end‑to‑end lifecycle ownership, from design through deployment and production support, with a focus on secure, reliable

Qualifications

• 5+ years' commercial software engineering experience delivering production‑grade solutions within complex environments.
• Strong commercial experience developing applications using Java.
• Experience working with other JVM‑based technologies such as Kotlin and/or Scala.
• Experience with messaging and event‑streaming technologies such as Kafka.
• Strong experience integrating with backend services including PostgreSQL, Redis, and S3/Object Storage solutions.
• Deep understanding of microservices architecture, distributed systems, and modern software design patterns.
• Experience working with Big Data technologies and data‑intensive applications.
• Experience operating within Agile DevSecOps environments.
• Knowledge and application of Zero Trust Architecture principles.
• Strong experience with CI/CD pipelines, automated deployments, and modern software delivery practices.
• Commitment to clean coding standards, code reviews, defensive programming, and high‑quality technical documentation.
• Experience using source control and collaboration platforms including GitHub, GitLab, and the Atlassian Suite.
• Strong problem‑solving skills with the ability to design and implement scalable technical solutions.

Responsibilities

• Design, develop, deploy, and enhance backend platforms, applications, and services that support mission‑critical programmes.
• Deliver secure, scalable, and maintainable software solutions that meet both functional and non‑functional business requirements.
• Participate in Agile ceremonies, including sprint planning, story refinement, estimation, and retrospectives.
• Deliver incremental software releases and continuous improvements through modern Agile delivery practices.
• Collaborate closely with engineers, architects, and product stakeholders across cross‑functional teams.
• Take ownership of the services and applications your team delivers, ensuring ongoing reliability, performance, and supportability.
• Build, maintain, and optimise CI/CD pipelines.
• Contribute to engineering standards, best practices, and quality assurance processes across the development lifecycle.
• Support knowledge sharing and foster a collaborative engineering culture.
• Assist in troubleshooting, root cause analysis, and resolution of production issues when required.

Skills

Java

Kotlin

Scala

Kafka

PostgreSQL

Redis

S3/Storage

Microservices

Big Data

DevSecOps

CI/CD

GitHub

GitLab

Atlassian

Zero Trust

Docker

Kubernetes

AWS

Azure

Tools

Docker

Kubernetes

AWS

Azure

Job description

Sanderson Government and Defence is seeking an experienced Lead/Principal Software Engineer to design and deliver secure, backend platforms and services for defence and government customers. You will work in cloud‑native, Agile environments, building scalable, mission‑critical systems across public and private clouds.

Active SC Clearance is mandatory. The role emphasizes end‑to‑end lifecycle ownership, from design through deployment and production support, with a focus on secure, reliable