35973 - Senior Developer

We welcome and encourage applications from everyone, including groups currently underrepresented in our workforce and pride ourselves as being an employer of choice. To find out more about how we champion diversity and inclusion in the workplace, visit: https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/ministry-of-justice/about/equality-and-diversity

Introduction

These are exciting times at MOJ Digital and Technology. We have a clear vision - to develop a digitally-enabled justice system that works more simply for users - and we’re looking for talented people to help us achieve it. We’re making things better by building adaptable, effective services and making systems that are simple to use for staff and citizens. It can be challenging but it’s also important and rewarding. As well as doing great work, we’re creating a place that’s great to do work in. We offer tip-top kit, brilliant training opportunities and support from expert colleagues. On top of that, you’ll find flexible working, an inclusive culture and a place where your opinion is valued.

As a senior developer at MOJ Digital & Technology you will be designing and building web systems that make a genuine difference to people’s lives. You’ll make sure we build things the right way, keeping up to date with the latest technologies and trends, whilst delivering working software early and often.

At MOJ you’ll be working on our acclaimed open-source public services, with user needs at the heart of everything, helping us transform Government for the future. Working as part of a multi-disciplinary team, you’ll be helping define how we do what we do, and making sure that our systems are built to be changed rapidly.

Technologies

You will have demonstrable experience of agile development in PHP, Golang, Python or comparable technology and a good working knowledge of modern back end web frameworks, as well as an understanding of front end development in HTML, CSS, and Javascript. You’ll also have some knowledge of, or a willingness to learn other languages as required.

An understanding of version control (ideally with Git) is essential, as is an awareness of automated testing techniques, modern deployment approaches and how cloud infrastructure is managed.

You will:

• Build user-centred, open source, RESTful web systems to serve a variety of citizen and government needs
• Be responsible for development of large areas of projects, or small projects in their entirety
• Build automated tests to support our continuous deployment environment
• Share knowledge of tools and techniques with the wider team and community, both developers and non-developers
• Transform government into a more agile organisation by helping to embed modern development practices
• Help build and maintain a diverse, inclusive culture across the development community, growing awareness, inclusivity, and balance
• Occasionally participate in 2nd line support during office hours, and sometimes out of hours (for which you’ll be paid an allowance and further hourly payment when on call)
• Manage a small number of less experienced developers
• Help with hiring, taking part in recruitment of other developers

All our developers should have:

• Experience of software development, with knowledge of PHP, Python, Golang, Javascript, or similar
• A systematic approach to solving problems
• Experience using automated tests to continuously validate your work
• Experience of modern development and deployment techniques, including continuous integration and continuous delivery
• Experience working in agile environments
• Enthusiasm for sharing knowledge and working in a multi-disciplinary team
• A working knowledge of unix-like operating systems such as Linux and Mac OS X
• An awareness of technologies used for web applications, e.g databases, backups, CDNs and search, and of Unix-like operating systems, eg. Linux and/or Mac OS

As a senior developer you'll also have:

• The ability to quickly learn new languages and frameworks and willingness to pick the right tool for the job
• The ability to manage technical debt appropriately and proportionately
• Knowledge of open source principles and technologies
• Familiarity with practices such as TDD, continuous integration, continuous delivery, and DevOps
• Experience of mentoring and supporting your colleagues, whether one-to-one or in groups

In the Civil Service, we use Success Profiles, a flexible framework, to assess candidates against a range of elements using a variety of selection methods, therefore giving you the opportunity to demonstrate the various elements required to be successful in the role.

At the interview we will be assessing your technical/specialist skills and experience, testing your ability through relevant assessments and asking you questions around the behaviours we require to be successful in this role. The behaviours we assess are:

• Leadership
• Communicating and influencing
• Working together
• Developing self and others
• Making effective decisions
• Delivering at pace
• Seeing the big picture
• Changing and improving
• Managing a quality service

We are an equal opportunity employer and value diversity at our company. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, colour, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, age, marital status or disability status.

Selection process details

Candidates must submit

• a current and relevant CV;
• a Cover letter (1 page max) setting out why you are interested in the role and how you meet the essential skills and experience required.

At the CV review/sift stage we will use the specialist skills and experience to determine your suitability for the role. At the interview we ask you questions based on the specialist skills and experience as well as behaviours outlined.

At the Interview we will ask open-ended questions to which they are seeking answers/evidence of essential, previous skills, experience and behaviours in order to guide their hiring decision. Note: interviews are expected to last one hour.

Note: due to the volume of applications we receive we are unable to provide feedback after the CV review (sift) stage.

Salary and working arrangements

If successful, the salary we offer you will be within the advertised range and will depend on the skills and experience you demonstrate at the interview. Therefore in your cover letter it would be helpful to the hiring teams if you can indicate your salary expectations and if possible your notice period.

Benefits:

• 37 hours/week and flexible working options - working from home or remotely, working part-time, job sharing, or working compressed hours.
• We have a fantastic learning and development offer
• £1000 of learning and development spend per year