Senior Technical Architect (Azure)

About the job Bristol, Darlington, London, Manchester, Wolverhampton Job Summary Here at the Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local Government (MHCLG), we work on things that make a real difference to people’s lives.   Whether it's through the homes we live in, the work of our local councils, or the communities we’re all part of, our work is at the top of the political agenda. We have ambitious and far-reaching outcomes to achieve this year and, if you’re thinking of joining us, there’s never been a more exciting time. We are seeking a Senior Technical Architect specialising in Microsoft Azure to lead the design, assurance, and evolution of cloud-based services within the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG). This role aligns with the DDaT Technical Architect capability framework at Senior (G7) level and supports the delivery of modern, secure, resilient public digital services. As a Senior Technical Architect, you will be the lead architect responsible and accountable for the Azure Platform. You will oversee its design, evolution, security, and ongoing maintenance, ensuring it remains robust, scalable, and aligned to departmental needs. Working closely with Enterprise Architects, Cyber Security, and project delivery teams, you will define and drive the Azure platform roadmap, prioritising improvements that enhance resilience, raise the security posture, embed secure by design, and support modern service delivery. You will guide architectural decision making, identify risks and manage their lifecycle, assure solution designs that consume the platform, and champion modern engineering practices, reusable cross government components, and DDaT aligned architecture standards. Find out more about our Digital teams and what they are working on through our MHCLG Digital blog. Please note that MHCLG do not offer visa sponsorship and applicants will need a valid visa for the duration of your employment. Job Description As a Senior Technical Architect, you'll: Produce clear architectural artefacts including HLDs, LLDs, patterns, roadmaps and service guidance to support delivery teams and governance forums Provide technical leadership within delivery teams, ensuring Azure solutions are secure, resilient, cost‑effective and meet user and business needs Design and assure cloud infrastructure, platform services, data flows and integrations, ensuring solutions follow agreed patterns and architectural principles Carry out impact assessments across systems, estates, APIs and data flows, identifying dependencies, risks and required changes Ensure solutions align with DDaT standards, technology policies, architectural principles and wider departmental strategies, escalating deviations where required Champion responsible and AI‑assisted architectural practices, including safe use of AI in design, review and optimisation activities Lead the adoption of DevOps and platform engineering practices such as IaC, policy‑as‑code, CI/CD, observability and operational readiness Embed secure‑by‑design and modern security architecture, applying zero trust, IAM and resilience patterns in all technical designs Contribute to capability development, offering coaching and knowledge‑sharing across teams to support a high‑performance engineering culture Advise on sustainability, cost optimisation, technical debt and risk, and work with vendors, delivery partners and governance boards to provide clear technical recommendation As a Senior Technical Architect, You'll Produce clear architectural artefacts including HLDs, LLDs, patterns, roadmaps and service guidance to support delivery teams and governance forums Provide technical leadership within delivery teams, ensuring Azure solutions are secure, resilient, cost‑effective and meet user and business needs Design and assure cloud infrastructure, platform services, data flows and integrations, ensuring solutions follow agreed patterns and architectural principles Carry out impact assessments across systems, estates, APIs and data flows, identifying dependencies, risks and required changes Ensure solutions align with DDaT standards, technology policies, architectural principles and wider departmental strategies, escalating deviations where required Champion responsible and AI‑assisted architectural practices, including safe use of AI in design, review and optimisation activities Lead the adoption of DevOps and platform engineering practices such as IaC, policy‑as‑code, CI/CD, observability and operational readiness Embed secure‑by‑design and modern security architecture, applying zero trust, IAM and resilience patterns in all technical designs Contribute to capability development, offering coaching and knowledge‑sharing across teams to support a high‑performance engineering culture Advise on sustainability, cost optimisation, technical debt and risk, and work with vendors, delivery partners and governance boards to provide clear technical recommendation Person specification As a Senior Technical Architect, You'll Have Extensive experience designing and assuring enterprise‑scale Azure solutions (platform, identity, networking, integration, governance) Strong understanding of cloud architecture patterns, security, automation, resilience, data‑flow, and operational models Ability to translate business needs into robust, cost‑effective, secure technical designs. Hands‑on experience with DevOps practices, Terraform IaC, CI/CD pipelines, automation, monitoring, and observability Experience developing and governing architectural standards, patterns, guardrails, and frameworks Strong influencing and leadership skills, shaping technical decisions and long‑term cloud strategy. Deep knowledge of identity, authentication/authorisation, and cloud security controls (Azure AD / Entra ID) Experience working in agile, multidisciplinary teams, with strong documentation and analysis capabilities Awareness of core data‑architecture principles, including governance concepts, lineage, interoperability standards, and high‑level API/integration design patterns Certification Requirements Microsoft Azure Solutions Architect Expert (AZ‑305) preferred Candidates without certification may apply with 5+ years of equivalent Azure architecture experience, including enterprise‑scale design, governance, and security leadership Desirable Skills Familiarity with government cloud strategy, NCSC guidance, or cross‑government services. Practical experience with cloud data platforms and API/integration technologies (e.g., Azure Data Factory, Synapse, Databricks, Purview) Experience with SRE practices, observability, or sustainable cloud operations. Understanding of responsible AI principles or AI‑assisted architectural tooling Alongside your salary of £58,092, Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government contributes £16,829 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides. At MHCLG we offer many benefits that range from tailored career pathways and flexible working to MyLifestyle Childcare Voucher and Cycle to Work Schemes. For more information, please click here. Artificial intelligence Artificial intelligence can be a useful tool to support your application, however, all examples and statements provided must be truthful, factually accurate and taken directly from your own experience. Where plagiarism has been identified (presenting the ideas and experiences of others, or generated by artificial intelligence, as your own) applications may be withdrawn and internal candidates may be subject to disciplinary action. Please see our candidate guidance (opens in a new window) for more information on appropriate and inappropriate use. Selection process details Application and Selection The application process will be split into 3 stages, testing the following Success Profiles: Behaviours , Experience , Technical Please ensure your CV does not contain any personally identifiable information. Note: We do not consider direct CV applications. All applications must be submitted via the provided application link. Stage 1: Sift (CV) Experience: The sift panel will use the information in your CV to assess your experience, skills and knowledge against the job description and person specification so please submit your CV demonstrating alignment to that criteria. Stage 2: Technical Ability Test You will be invited to a technical test lasting 30-40 minutes. The test will be scored and candidates who score above benchmark will be invited to interview. Stage 3: Interview Behaviours: "Communicating and Influencing", "Delivering at Pace", "Making Effective Decisions" Experience: Experience questions will be based around the essential skills and criteria as listed in the job description. Technical: Technical questions will be based around the essential skills and criteria as listed in the job description. Candidates will be asked to complete a technical test during the interview, with further details to be provided upon invitation to interview. Sift and Interview Dates Sifting is envisaged to take place from 24th June 2026. Interviews are currently being held remotely via videocall. This could be subject to change. Group 1 Digital & Data Roles MHCLG has implemented the Digital and Data capability framework for Group 1 roles. Applicants that are successful and have been offered a position will be required to complete a capability assessment after the interview. MHCLG will honour completed capability assessments for this role from other Government Departments for existing civil servants on level transfer only. Please provide a copy of your capability assessment to the Hiring Manager when applying. If you have any queries on pay, please contact the Hiring Manager. Each experience or technical skill is assessed between 1-3, representing working towards, at or above the job level requirements. You are awarded a proficiency level accordingly, and you will be given opportunity to annually re assess your capability and potentially increase your overall remuneration, through payment of allowances, depending on level of assessed capability. Candidates moving from another government department have the option to retain their current basic pay if this is within our pay band for the relevant grade. Grade 7 Group 1 Digital and Data salary The basic pay for this role will be between £63,483 - £72,287 (London), £58,092 - £66,742 (National). Candidates will usually be recruited to the median of the payscale. A digital allowance may also be payable depending on the level of assessed capability, in order to meet the MHCLG overall targeted remuneration rate for the specific grade, location and capability rating. For applicants in receipt of existing allowances, we will assess each case individually, but we would seek not to exceed the MHCLG overall targeted remuneration rate for the specific grade, location and capability rating for existing civil servants, the usual policy on level transfer and promotion will apply, subject to the statements above. How We Recruit Find out everything you need to know before applying here.. Applying Sifting Interview Interview Results & Feedback Reserve List Near Miss Civil Service Grades We are a DCS, RIS & GPTWV employer Reasonable Adjustments How To Apply What you need to know before applying. Security Clearance Requirements Civil Service Nationality Requirements Right to Work Artificial Intelligence Civil Service Code and Recruitment Principles CV Declaration Sponsorships Salary and Grade Existing Civil Servants Conflict of Interest Location and Flexible Working Fixed Term Contracts Internal Fraud Database - Internal Fraud Register Appeals and Complaints Conflict of Interest Security Clearance Requirements National Office: BPSS + SC London Office: BPSS + SC Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment. Security Successful candidates must undergo a criminal record check. Successful candidates must meet the security requirements before they can be appointed. The level of security needed is security check (opens in a new window).See our vetting charter (opens in a new window). People working with government assets must complete baseline personnel security standard (opens in new window) checks. Successful candidates must undergo a criminal record check. Successful candidates must meet the security requirements before they can be appointed. The level of security needed is security check (opens in a new window).See our vetting charter (opens in a new window). People working with government assets must complete baseline personnel security standard (opens in new window) checks. Nationality requirements This Job Is Broadly Open To The Following Groups UK nationals nationals of the Republic of Ireland nationals of Commonwealth countries who have the right to work in the UK nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities with settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS) (opens in a new window) nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities who have made a valid application for settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS) individuals with limited leave to remain or indefinite leave to remain who were eligible to apply for EUSS on or before 31 December 2020 Turkish nationals, and certain family members of Turkish nationals, who have accrued the right to work in the Civil Service Further information on nationality requirements (opens in a new window) Working for the Civil Service The Civil Service Code (opens in a new window) sets out the standards of behaviour expected of civil servants. We recruit by merit on the basis of fair and open competition, as outlined in the Civil Service Commission's recruitment principles (opens in a new window). The Civil Service embraces diversity and promotes equal opportunities. As such, we run a Disability Confident Scheme (DCS) for candidates with disabilities who meet the minimum selection criteria. The Civil Service also offers a Redeployment Interview Scheme to civil servants who are at risk of redundancy, and who meet the minimum requirements for the advertised vacancy. The Civil Service Code (opens in a new window) sets out the standards of behaviour expected of civil servants. We recruit by merit on the basis of fair and open competition, as outlined in the Civil Service Commission's recruitment principles (opens in a new window). The Civil Service embraces diversity and promotes equal opportunities. As such, we run a Disability Confident Scheme (DCS) for candidates with disabilities who meet the minimum selection criteria. The Civil Service also offers a Redeployment Interview Scheme to civil servants who are at risk of redundancy, and who meet the minimum requirements for the advertised vacancy. Diversity and Inclusion The Civil Service is committed to attract, retain and invest in talent wherever it is found. To learn more please see the Civil Service People Plan (opens in a new window) and the Civil Service Diversity and Inclusion Strategy (opens in a new window). Once this job has closed, the job advert will no longer be available. You may want to save a copy for your records. Contact point for applicants Job Contact Name : Digital Data Jobs Email : Digitaldatajobs@communities.gov.uk Recruitment team Email : Digitaldatajobs@communities.gov.uk Further information About If you are unsure about any part of the process or require additional information about the post to enable you to progress your application, you should speak to the Resourcing team - Recruitment@communities.gov.uk. Candidates can appeal at any stage of the recruitment process if they believe there has been: a procedural irregularity an infringement of the Civil Service equal opportunities policy exceptional circumstances which were not notified to the interview panel which might have affected performance on the day. It is important to note that these are appeals about the process not the decision. In the first instance, an appeal should be directed to the MHCLG Resourcing Hub at Recruitment@communities.gov.uk. If the MHCLG Resourcing Hub is unable to satisfactorily resolve your complaint, you may contact put your complaint in writing to the Civil Service Commission, Room G8,1 Horse Guards Road, London, SW1A 2HQ or by email to: info@csc.gov.uk