Principal Wireless Network Engineer
Added 8 Oct · still live
Likely
Sponsorship likelihood
This employer has issued visas recently
Pro only
Salary
Pro sees the advertised pay
£45,600
Going rate
Skilled Worker going rate
This role likely qualifies for a Skilled Worker visa
SOC 2137 (97% match) is an eligible occupation, with a going rate of £45,600, and National Grid is a licensed sponsor. That is our reading of the rules. Whether they issue a Certificate of Sponsorship is still their call.
Your salary route
New graduate or PhD holder? Pick one of the lower rates.
What each route needs for this job
| Occupation code | New entrant 70% of going rate | STEM PhD 80% of going rate | Relevant PhD 90% of going rate | Standard rate 100% of going rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
2137 IT network professionals Most likely code | £33,400 Clears | £36,500 Clears | £41,100 Clears | £45,600 Clears |
We use the lowest threshold across the plausible codes. Likelihood is Possible at most when the pay clears only a lower rate, or only under a less likely code. A mark is for the top of the advertised pay. How the Home Office picks the code
About the role
About Us
Every day we deliver safe and secure energy to homes, communities, and businesses. We are there when people need us the most. We connect people to the energy they need for the lives they live. The pace of change in society and our industry is accelerating and our expertise and track record puts us in an unparalleled position to shape the sustainable future of our industry.
To be successful we must anticipate the needs of our customers, reducing the cost of energy delivery today and pioneering the flexible energy systems of tomorrow. This requires us to deliver on our promises and always look for new opportunities to grow, both ourselves and our business.
IT and Digital works in a harmonised partnership with the National Grid group of diverse energy businesses to deliver technology which revolutionises the way we operate. As we lead the charge towards a carbon-free future, our teams are embracing disruptive changes in our industry by working with Agile methodologies and adopting Digital mindsets to drive efficiency and bring new capabilities for our internal and external customers.
Our work here is critical. National Grid moves energy to millions of homes and businesses in the UK and US and the technology we utilise to complete that task is down to us. The successful applicant for this position will be an integral contributor towards this goal and we will support your professional development as part of our multi-cultural, customer-centric global team.
This role operates under a hybrid working model and is based out of the Warwick, UK office. Hybrid work expectations are subject to business needs and company policy.
About The Role
Our vision is to be recognised as a world leading Information Technology and Digital function in the energy sector and a trusted partner across National Grid businesses.
In the Principal Network Engineer – Wireless role, you act as the senior technical authority for enterprise wireless services, with expert understanding of RF design, site surveys, spectrum analysis, and protocols; focused on improving reliability, security, user experience, and operational resilience across National Grid sites.
The role will lead the design, deployment, optimisation, and lifecycle management and technical assurance of enterprise WLAN services across office, operational, and industrial environments. A significant part of the e
Every day we deliver safe and secure energy to homes, communities, and businesses. We are there when people need us the most. We connect people to the energy they need for the lives they live. The pace of change in society and our industry is accelerating and our expertise and track record puts us in an unparalleled position to shape the sustainable future of our industry.
To be successful we must anticipate the needs of our customers, reducing the cost of energy delivery today and pioneering the flexible energy systems of tomorrow. This requires us to deliver on our promises and always look for new opportunities to grow, both ourselves and our business.
IT and Digital works in a harmonised partnership with the National Grid group of diverse energy businesses to deliver technology which revolutionises the way we operate. As we lead the charge towards a carbon-free future, our teams are embracing disruptive changes in our industry by working with Agile methodologies and adopting Digital mindsets to drive efficiency and bring new capabilities for our internal and external customers.
Our work here is critical. National Grid moves energy to millions of homes and businesses in the UK and US and the technology we utilise to complete that task is down to us. The successful applicant for this position will be an integral contributor towards this goal and we will support your professional development as part of our multi-cultural, customer-centric global team.
This role operates under a hybrid working model and is based out of the Warwick, UK office. Hybrid work expectations are subject to business needs and company policy.
About The Role
Our vision is to be recognised as a world leading Information Technology and Digital function in the energy sector and a trusted partner across National Grid businesses.
In the Principal Network Engineer – Wireless role, you act as the senior technical authority for enterprise wireless services, with expert understanding of RF design, site surveys, spectrum analysis, and protocols; focused on improving reliability, security, user experience, and operational resilience across National Grid sites.
The role will lead the design, deployment, optimisation, and lifecycle management and technical assurance of enterprise WLAN services across office, operational, and industrial environments. A significant part of the e
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ngagement will involve predictive and onsite wireless surveys, RF analysis, low-level design production, Bill of Materials creation, and post-deployment validation using Ekahau and/or Hamina tools.
You will support key initiatives including replacement of end-of-life network hardware, enhanced Wi-Fi deployments, high-speed internet connectivity services overlayed with SD-WAN technology, and alternative connectivity options such as satellite and 5G solutions for disaster recovery, rapid deployment, and facility expansion projects.
You will work closely with stakeholders across IT, operations, platform teams, vendors, managed service providers, architects, and other engineers to define requirements, produce robust designs, support implementation, and transition solutions into support.
You will lead on the creation and adoption of network engineering standards, with a view to adopting and leading an automation first mindset whilst ensuring alignment to relevant technical roadmaps, working closely with Technical Leads, Architects and other engineers.
Bringing a calm, measured approach to incident response, even in challenging situations, you’ll provide clear technical direction grounded in integrity and aligned with National Grid’s values.
You’ll also have the presence and credibility to engage senior stakeholders, provide authoritative technical leadership, and communicate complex concepts in a clear and meaningful way aligned to project outcomes.
Additional Ad-hoc travel to National Grid locations will be required to conduct physical Wi-Fi surveys, pre-deployment validation, troubleshooting work and post-deployment assurance activities.
Success in this role will be measured not only by the delivery of individual wireless solutions, but by the quality, consistency, resilience, security, and supportability of wireless engineering across the organisation. The role is expected to raise engineering standards, reduce systemic risk, improve service performance, and strengthen wireless capability across the team.
What You'll Do
You will support key initiatives including replacement of end-of-life network hardware, enhanced Wi-Fi deployments, high-speed internet connectivity services overlayed with SD-WAN technology, and alternative connectivity options such as satellite and 5G solutions for disaster recovery, rapid deployment, and facility expansion projects.
You will work closely with stakeholders across IT, operations, platform teams, vendors, managed service providers, architects, and other engineers to define requirements, produce robust designs, support implementation, and transition solutions into support.
You will lead on the creation and adoption of network engineering standards, with a view to adopting and leading an automation first mindset whilst ensuring alignment to relevant technical roadmaps, working closely with Technical Leads, Architects and other engineers.
Bringing a calm, measured approach to incident response, even in challenging situations, you’ll provide clear technical direction grounded in integrity and aligned with National Grid’s values.
You’ll also have the presence and credibility to engage senior stakeholders, provide authoritative technical leadership, and communicate complex concepts in a clear and meaningful way aligned to project outcomes.
Additional Ad-hoc travel to National Grid locations will be required to conduct physical Wi-Fi surveys, pre-deployment validation, troubleshooting work and post-deployment assurance activities.
Success in this role will be measured not only by the delivery of individual wireless solutions, but by the quality, consistency, resilience, security, and supportability of wireless engineering across the organisation. The role is expected to raise engineering standards, reduce systemic risk, improve service performance, and strengthen wireless capability across the team.
What You'll Do
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- Design, deploy, and optimise enterprise wireless LAN solutions across office, operational, and industrial environments, ensuring reliable, secure, and scalable connectivity.
- Own and assure the engineering of enterprise wireless solutions, establishing the design principles, standards, and technical controls required to deliver secure, resilient, scalable, and supportable services.
- Provide technical expertise and strategic guidance on network architecture, upgrades, lifecycle management, and emerging technologies to meet evolving business needs.
- Lead network projects and complex technical workstreams, acting as both a team leader and an individual contributor to deliver outcomes on time and within budget.
- Conduct predictive and onsite wireless surveys, RF analysis, coverage assessments, and post-deployment validation using Ekahau, Hamina, or equivalent wireless survey tooling.
- Lead troubleshooting for complex Wi-Fi issues including authentication, roaming, interference, coverage gaps, capacity constraints, and performance degradation.
- Create and update low-level designs for Wi-Fi, NAC, wireless authentication, role-based access, and related network services.
- Provide design authority for complex wireless and NAC solutions, producing critical designs where necessary and assuring designs created by engineers, suppliers, and delivery partners.
- Produce accurate Bills of Materials for new wireless deployments, refresh programmes, hardware upgrades, and wider network modernisation initiatives.
- Support Wi-Fi lifecycle management including hardware refresh, software updates, capacity planning, standards alignment, and operational readiness.
- Provide specialist support for Aruba ClearPass and CISCO ISE network access control capabilities including 802.1X, RADIUS, profiling, policy enforcement, and role-based access.
- Support enhanced Wi-Fi deployments alongside high-speed internet connectivity services overlayed with SD-WAN technology where required.
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- Bachelor's degree in a relevant discipline, or an equivalent combination of education, training, and experience.
- 10+ years of related experience in enterprise network engineering, with strong hands-on experience in wireless LAN design, deployment, optimisation, and troubleshooting.
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- Deep understanding of RF fundamentals including channel planning, transmit power, interference mitigation, coverage design, capacity planning, roaming behaviour, and spectrum considerations.
- Strong knowledge of 802.11 standards including Wi-Fi 5, Wi-Fi 6, Wi-Fi 6E, and Wi-Fi 7.
- Strong knowledge of WLAN authentication including EAP methods, RADIUS, role-based access, profiling, policy engines, and integration with NAC platforms.
- Experience with enterprise wireless controllers, cloud-managed Wi-Fi platforms, access points, policy engines, and wireless analytics tools.
- Strong practical knowledge of Cisco WLAN, Aruba WLAN, Aruba ClearPass, and related access network technologies.
- Minimum Wireless certifications such as CWDP, CWSP / ECSE; CWNE strongly preferred.
- Cisco certifications such as CCNP Wireless or CCIE Wireless.
- Aruba certifications such as ACMP, ACDP, or ACCX.
- Cisco DevNet & SAFe Agilist or similar certifications are also desirable.
- Competitive Salary: circa £65,000 – £75,000 per annum (based on capability, and experience)
Please note that in most cases, National Grid is unable to offer sponsorship for employment under the UK points-based immigration system. As such, applicants must have the legal right to work in the UK without requiring sponsorship now or in the future under the UK points-based immigration system. However, in exceptional circumstances where there is a clear and demonstrable need for specialist skills that cannot be sourced from the local labour market, National Grid may consider offering sponsorship. All applications are welcome from candidates who meet these requirements, regardless of race, nationality, or ethnic origin.
This description is the source posting as it read when we added it. We are not affiliated with National Grid, so check their own site for the current details.
Where this offer sits in the market
IT network professionals (SOC 2137) · UK · ONS ASHE 2025 · basic pay · ~39k in sampleSOC 2137
- Middle half £36,348–60,788
- Median £46,176
- Going rate £45,600
- Threshold £41,700
- New entrant £33,400–41,100
Similar sponsored roles
See all UK visa jobsNo close matches live right now.
Browse more sponsored jobs at National GridAbout sponsorship for this role
Does this job guarantee visa sponsorship?
Not necessarily. National Grid 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 2137 going rate of £45,600. New-entrant and shortage discounts can lower it.