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Lead Infrastructure Engineer
Not disclosed
Salary
Not disclosed by employer
£54,900
Going rate
Skilled Worker going rate
This role may qualify for a Skilled Worker visa
SOC 2133 is an eligible occupation, but we classified this role with low confidence (52% match). If the code is right — and Social Security Scotland is a licensed sponsor — it should qualify, but double-check the occupation eligibility rules against the actual role.
About the role
Are you ready to lead cloud transformation at scale in a team as passionate about public service and technical excellence as you are? Join us as a Lead Cloud Engineer and drive innovation, resilience and operational excellence across our AWS estate.
As Lead Cloud Engineer within the Agriculture and Rural Economy (ARE) Digital and Data Division, you will play a pivotal role in shaping the cloud engineering capability that underpins critical digital services across the Scottish Government. Our mission is to provide the technical expertise and capacity needed to deliver secure, reliable and future-ready digital solutions that support sustainable economic growth in agriculture, the food industry and rural communities.
You will lead the development and implementation of cloud strategy, architecture and engineering standards across our AWS estate, working closely with Product, Platform, Software Engineering, Data, Site Reliability Engineering and Cyber Security teams. Your primary objective will be to ensure our cloud platforms are robust, scalable and secure, enabling the successful delivery of key digital outcomes while driving continuous improvement, innovation and best practice across the organisation.
Responsibilities- Coding and implementing scalable, secure and supported cloud infrastructure.
- Presenting recommendations for technologies or system improvements to support project goals, based on IT knowledge and analysis of business and system needs.
- Evaluating the success of integrated solutions, identifying best practices and lessons learned.
- Ensuring high availability and performance of critical services.
- Building internal cloud capability and mentoring engineers.
- Supporting innovation and continuous improvement in service delivery.
- Contributing to the department’s overall technical strategy and roadmap, while owning the technical roadmap for services within your defined domain.
We use an assessment framework called 'Success Profiles' which lists the elements we test and provides detailed descriptions of each. Find out more about how we assess the Success profiles: candidate guide - gov.scot
Experience
- Lead Criteria 1: You lead – Your experience enables you to lead strategic improvements across cloud platforms and infrastructure operations. You drive initiatives that enhance the performance, reliability, and scalability of engineering systems, while fostering a culture of technical excellence and continuous improvement within the Cloud Platform Team.
- Lead Criteria 2: You design – Your experience engineering cloud-based systems using a range of technologies and the AWS Well Architected Framework enables you to design robust, scalable, and secure solutions. You confidently select the most appropriate cloud services and approaches - embedding security controls by design and ensuring alignment with performance, compliance, cost, and operational requirements.
- You write it - Your experience of building solutions to highly complex problems using modern cloud technologies allows you to use agreed specifications to independently design, code, test and document infrastructure modules of high complexity, using the right standards and tools.
- You run it - Your experience developing and deploying live cloud infrastructure allows you to define the monitoring, alerting, and operational procedures of a service to consistently identify, locate and fix faults.
- Making a Quality Service - Level 4
- Making Effective Decisions - Level 4
Technical Skills:
This role is aligned to Lead Infrastructure Engineer
These skills will be tested during the Technical Assessment if you are successful at sift stage. They will not be assessed at the application stage. Please review the following to understand the skill expectations: Infrastructure engineer - Government Digital and Data Profession Capability Framework
Apply online, providing a CV and Supporting Statement of no more than 750 words which provides evidence of how you meet the Experience and Behaviours listed in the Success Profiles above. Be sure to provide specific examples of work that you’ve done that showcase your relevant experience.
Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools can be used to support your application, but all statements and examples 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, and presented as your own) applications will be withdrawn and internal candidates may be subject to disciplinary action. Please see our candidate guidance for more information on acceptable and unacceptable uses of AI in recruitment.Skilled Worker Sponsorship not being offered
Skilled Worker sponsorship is not available for this role. As a result, we are unable to appoint candidates who require Skilled Worker sponsorship now or in the future. Applicants must have an existing and ongoing right to work in the UK.
Candidates will have their applications assessed against all Experience criteria. If a large number of applications are received an initial sift will be conducted on the Lead Criteria highlighted above.
Candidates who are successful at sift stage will be invited to attend an Interview and Technical Assessment. The interview will further assess the Experience and Behaviours listed in the job advert and the Technical Assessment will evaluate the Technical Skills relevant to the role.
Candidates who pass the sift and are invited to the Interview and Technical Assessment stage will receive a Technical Assessment Candidate Pack, which will outline the skills to be assessed and the assessment methods to be used.
Following the application sift, there may be a telephone interview as part of the assessment process before the main interview.
Assessments are scheduled for w/c 7th September 2026 however this may be subject to change.
Recruitment Principles
As a government organisation, we adhere to the Civil Service Commission Recruitment Principles and we investigate any complaints received in relation to recruitment cases.
The Scottish Government is the devolved government for Scotland. We have responsibility for a wide range of key policy areas including: education, health, the economy, justice, housing and transport. We offer rewarding careers and employ people across Scotland in a wide range of professions and roles.Our staff are part of the UK Civil Service, observing the Civil Service Code and working for Ministers and senior stakeholders to deliver vital public services which improve the lives of the people of Scotland. We offer a supportive and inclusive working environment along with a wide range of employee benefits. Find out more about what we offer. As part of the UK Civil Service, we uphold the Civil Service Nationality Rules. Working patternOur standard hours are 35 hours per week and we offer a range of flexible working options depending on the needs of the role, including Flexi-leave. Scottish Government staff in hybrid-compatible roles should aim to work in-person 40% of the time, either in an office or other agreed work location. If you have specific questions about the role you are applying for, please contact us. Security checks
This description is the source posting as it read when we added it. We are not affiliated with Social Security Scotland, so check their own site for the current details.
Where this offer sits in the market
SOC 2133 · UK · ONS ASHE 2025 · ~163k in sampleSimilar sponsored roles
See all jobsNo close matches live right now.
Browse more sponsored jobs at Social Security ScotlandAbout sponsorship for this role
Does this job guarantee visa sponsorship?
Not necessarily. Social Security Scotland holds a sponsor licence, but sponsorship for a specific hire is always the employer's decision. Be upfront in your application that you'll require it.
What salary is needed for this role to be eligible?
The offer must clear both the general threshold and the SOC 2133 going rate of £54,900. New-entrant and shortage discounts can lower it.