Senior Database Administrator

The UKHSA Digital and Data Directorate provides strategic leadership and oversight for developing and managing a common and bespoke suite of performant, modern, secure, data and analytical tools, services, platforms, and applications, ensuring access to high quality data and analytics services, internally and externally.

As a Database Administrator, you will be part of a dynamic team responsible for delivering effective data services supporting public health delivery. Specifically, this will involve arranging to receive data in various formats, setting up data feeds to interfacing systems, curating data for onward use and ensuring the system has robust system management procedures in place.

You will lead the delivery of data management work on a wide range of public health priority topics driven by the needs of internal UKHSA colleagues and external stakeholders, and you will support Data and Surveillance Services and wider Digital and Data work programmes.

Your role will include data management, production and support of automated pipelines and standard operating procedures, dynamic quality assurance of data (i.e. data quality dashboards), as well as supporting the provision of training and translational support to enable stakeholders to understand how to use the data.

You will work matrix style with colleagues and will be joining at an exciting time where we will be transitioning to a new cloud native solution.

This role involves the collation, analysis, interpretation, and presentation of public health information. You will be required to have good working knowledge of database technologies for reproducible pipelines, be highly numerate and have good communication skills.

Working for your organisation

We pride ourselves as being an employer of choice, where Everyone Matters promoting equality of opportunity to actively encourage applications from everyone, including groups currently underrepresented in our workforce.

UKHSA ethos is to be an inclusive organisation for all our staff and stakeholders. To create, nurture and sustain an inclusive culture, where differences drive innovative solutions to meet the needs of our workforce and wider communities. We do this through celebrating and protecting differences by removing barriers and promoting equity and equality of opportunity for all., * Supporting surveillance data management within the UKHSA Second Generation Surveillance System (SGSS) and data flows managed by the wider division.

• Establish data feeds to interfacing systems.
• Ensure system methodology, rules and code support the effective enrichment of data for a curated data source to be available for onward use.
• Providing technical and administrative support for specialist systems, including the production of system specification documentation and the production of relevant procedures and protocols, using GitHub, etc.
• Responsible for data synchronization process, database backups, archiving and disaster recovery processes and procedures.
• Lead developer of code to automate data querying tasks, preferably using programming language such as SQL, SSIS, Python etc.
• Investigate data anomalies prior to and during processing of data, considering corrective action or bringing to the attention of senior colleagues as required.
• Ensure Information Governance (IG) requirements are in place.
• Ability to work to instruction and independently, to use initiative and to work effectively as part of a team.
• Able to effectively manage own workload and make informed decisions in the absence of required information, working to tight and often changing timescales.
• High level of organisational, time management and prioritisation skills to manage own workload and conflicting demands including technical documentation authoring skills.
• Committed to equality of opportunity and good working relationships, both in terms of day-to-day working practices, but also in relation to management systems.

Managing Change Continuous Improvement:

• Supporting surveillance data management within the UKHSA Second Generation Surveillance System (SGSS) and data flows managed by the wider division.

• Contribute to the Overall curation of platform data from a performance, integrity, reliability, and security perspective.

• Lead projects which support the drive towards automation, reducing the management overhead and developing a more self-sufficient infrastructure (i.e. high-availability and load balancing capabilities). This is not an exhaustive list. You may also be required to line manage staff at an EO or HEO level., You will be required to complete an application form. You will be assessed on the listed (9) essential criteria, and this will be in the form of a:

• Application form ('Employer/ Activity history' section on the application)

• up to 750 word supporting statement.

This should outline how your skills, experience, and knowledge, provide evidence of your suitability for the role, with reference to the essential criteria.

The Application form and supporting statement will be marked together.

Please note you will not be able to upload your CV. You must complete the application form in as much detail as possible. Please do not email us your CV.

Longlisting:

In the event of a large number of applications we will longlist into 3 piles of:

• Meets all essential criteria
• Meets some essential criteria
• Meets no essential criteria

The following will be taken through to the next stage:

• Meets all essential criteria

Shortlisting:

In the event of a large number of applications we will shortlist on the following:

• Experience in set up and maintenance of ETL pipelines, securing, operating and troubleshooting any issues with databases, * 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)
• 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

Do you have experience in Time management?, * Educated to first degree level or equivalent relevant experience, preferably in a numerate discipline such as statistics, data science, mathematics, sciences, social sciences, economics, geography or similar. OR a Post-graduate degree or equivalent experience in public health or related field including public health, statistics, knowledge transfer, health economics or data science.

• Comprehensive skills in the use of at least some of the following to produce Reproducible Analytical Pipelines: SQL, SSIS, APIs, R and Python.
• Intermediate to advanced skills using AWS environment
• Skills in programming for example - data extraction, manipulation, analysis and presentation using functional or procedural approaches in a language such as Python and SQL as a priority.
• High level of expertise as a Database Administrator in the design, automation, implementation, administration and optimisation of large dataset, including performance tuning, integrity, database clustering, high availability, data replication, backups and security.
• Experience in set up and maintenance of ETL pipelines, securing, operating and troubleshooting any issues with databases.
• Experience using GitLab/GitHub to create, manage and store your code.
• Knowledge of data security, information governance and confidentiality issues.
• Develop standards, policies, guidelines and procedures defining the usage of database systems and services.

Desirable role criteria:

• Skills in other programming languages. Such as C#, F#, R, Powershell or Java.
• Knowledge of big data technologies such as NoSQL systems, Hadoop or equivalent.
• Knowledge of other database technologies such as PostgreSQL/MSSQL/MariaDB.
• Experience in multiple platform database administration (e.g. Azure and AWS)., This vacancy is using Success Profiles and will assess your Behaviours, Strengths, Experience and Technical skills., * Changing and Improving
• Communicating and Influencing
• Managing a Quality Service - Lead behaviour
• Working at Pace, Successful candidates must pass a disclosure and barring security check.

Successful candidates must meet the security requirements before they can be appointed. The level of security needed is Basic Personnel Security Standard., Successful candidates must undergo a criminal record check. People working with government assets must complete baseline personnel security standard (opens in new window) checks.

Alongside your salary of £41,983, UK Health Security Agency contributes £12,162 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides.

• Learning and development tailored to your role
• An environment with flexible working options
• A culture encouraging inclusion and diversity
• A Civil Service pension with an employer contribution of 28.97%, If you are successful at interview, and are moving from another government department, NHS, or Local Authority, the relevant starting salary principles for level transfers or promotions will apply. Otherwise, roles are offered at the pay scale minimum for the grade, but in exceptional circumstances there may be flexibility if you are able to demonstrate you are already in receipt of an existing, higher salary. Pay increases are through the relevant annual pay award for the role and terms.

Senior Executive Officer (SEO)

• £41,983- £48,128 (National)
• £44,148- £50,121 (Outer London)
• £46,310- £52,113 (Inner London)

Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.

UKHSA is investing in a new state-of-the-art National Biosecurity Centre in Harlow, Essex, which will eventually bring together teams currently based at Canary Wharf, Colindale and Porton Down. For more details, please see: Huge biosecurity centre investment to boost pandemic protection - GOV.UK.