Solution Architect

Job Description

About Scrumconnect Consulting

Scrumconnect Consulting is a multi-award-winning digital consultancy whose work has positively influenced the lives of over 40 million UK citizens. We deliver impactful technology solutions across UK government departments, working at the forefront of user-centred design, agile delivery, and scalable digital services that genuinely make a difference.

? Why This Opportunity Stands Out

• Work on a high-impact UK public sector digital programme, delivering services used by millions
• Opportunity to be based in Swansea, with relocation support of up to £5,000
• Visa sponsorship available for eligible candidates
• Strong focus on work-life balance with a flexible hybrid model (3 days onsite)
• Be part of a collaborative, multidisciplinary agile environment alongside civil servants and industry experts

Based in Swansea, South Wales - three days per week on-site

This role requires three days per week at our client's Swansea offices and we want to be straightforward about that. Swansea is a coastal city offering a genuinely excellent quality of life: lower cost of living than London or Birmingham, shorter commutes, and the kind of work-life balance that is hard to find elsewhere. If you have spent years commuting into a major city, working three days a week by the sea without taking a pay cut may be more appealing than you expect. The work is meaningful too, public sector digital delivery that directly impacts people's lives across the UK. We also offer relocation support of £3,000 - £5,000 to help make the move straightforward.

About the Role

We are seeking an authoritative and hands-on Solution/Technical Architect to provide architectural leadership across blended, multidisciplinary digital delivery squads within a large-scale UK government agency. Operating at the heart of a mature digital environment in Swansea, you will ensure that all solutions align with strategic architecture, cloud-first principles, the Government Digital and Data (GDD) Technology Code of Practice, and rigorous secure-by-design standards.

You will actively shape the technical direction of digital products that process tens of millions of customer transactions and billions of digital interactions annually. This is a high-impact role spanning citizen-facing services, internal staff systems, cloud infrastructure, API platforms, and critical Legacy transformation initiatives. You must be comfortable translating high-level architectural direction into deliverable agile sprint work while fostering a culture of continuous learning and skills transfer.

Key Responsibilities

• Architectural Leadership: Define, own, and communicate solution architectures for new and evolving digital services, producing clear Architecture Decision Records (ADRs), high-level and low-level designs, and reusable architecture patterns.
• Strategic Alignment: Ensure all designs conform to an agreed strategic architecture (API-first, cloud-first on AWS), software engineering standards, and cross-government digital frameworks.
• Technical Governance: Lead technical governance activities, including preparing submissions for Architecture Review Boards (ARB) and participating in design authorities and technical assurance reviews.
• Hands-on Collaboration: Provide active technical leadership within blended agile squads, reviewing code, advising on implementation approaches, and resolving complex technical blockers.
• Cloud & Platform Engineering: Drive cloud engineering decisions on AWS, encompassing serverless environments (Lambda/Node.js), containerisation, infrastructure-as-code (Terraform/CDK), and modern platform engineering practices.
• Cross-Government Integration: Assess and guide integration approaches for strategic cross-government platforms (such as digital identity, digital wallets, payment gateways, and notification systems) alongside third-party APIs.
• Legacy Modernisation: Lead architectural activities for Legacy transformation, safely migrating services away from mainframe, COBOL, and older database environments to scalable, modern platforms.
• Security & Compliance: Champion secure-by-design principles, participating in threat modelling (eg, STRIDE) and collaborating closely with cyber security and information assurance teams on Data Protection Impact Assessments (DPIAs).

Essential Skills & Experience

• Public Sector Delivery: Extensive hands-on experience acting as a Solution or Technical Architect on large-scale, complex digital transformation programmes within the public sector or highly regulated environments.
• Cloud-Native Expertise: Deep expertise in cloud-native architecture on AWS (including API Gateway, Lambda, ECS/EKS, RDS, S3, CloudFront, and IAM).
• Modern Architecture Patterns: Strong practical knowledge of API-first design principles, REST/GraphQL, event-driven architectures, microservices, and domain-driven design.
• Automation & Tooling: Proficiency with infrastructure-as-code tooling (such as Terraform, AWS CDK, or CloudFormation) and CI/CD pipeline design (eg, Jenkins, GitHub Actions).
• Security Knowledge: Comprehensive understanding of secure-by-design principles, cloud security guidance (eg, NCSC), and government security classifications (OFFICIAL, OFFICIAL-SENSITIVE).
• Communication & Artefacts: A proven track record of producing high-quality architectural artefacts (C4 models, ADRs) and confidently translating complex technical decisions for non-technical senior stakeholders.
• Agile Assurance: Experience working through all phases of agile delivery and actively contributing to formal government digital service assessments (such as GDS assessments).

Desirable Skills & Experience

• Legacy Migration: Prior experience with Legacy Mainframe modernisation and large-scale migration patterns.
• Large Data Estates: Familiarity with operating and architecting within extremely large data estates (handling upwards of 50 million records).
• Emerging Technologies: Awareness of emerging technologies and how they apply to public sector delivery, such as AI/ML on AWS, digital identity (eIDAS), or biometrics.
• Professional Certifications: Recognised architecture certifications, such as TOGAF or AWS Certified Solutions Architect Professional.
• Tech Stack Familiarity: Practical experience supporting and designing for Java SpringBoot Back End microservices and Ruby on Rails Front End architectures.

Refer to guidance at https://ddat-capability-framework.servicegov.uk/role/solution-architect for breadth and depth of relevant skills.

What we offer

• Competitive salary with annual review
• Company pension scheme
• Generous annual leave entitlement
• Critical illness cover
• Relocation support of £3,000 - £5,000
• Visa sponsorship for eligible candidates
• Access to learning and development resources
• A supportive, inclusive working environment

Our interview process

We keep things straightforward. Following an initial CV review, successful candidates will be invited to a short screening call with our recruitment team, followed by a two-stage process comprising a technical assessment and a values-based interview with the hiring team. We aim to move quickly and will keep you informed at every stage.

Equal Opportunities

Scrumconnect Consulting is an equal opportunities employer. We are committed to building a diverse and inclusive team and welcome applications from all backgrounds, regardless of age, disability, gender, ethnicity, religion, or sexual orientation.

How to Apply

Please submit your CV to [ (see below) ] or apply directly through this listing.

• Public Sector Delivery: Extensive hands-on experience acting as a Solution or Technical Architect on large-scale, complex digital transformation programmes within the public sector or highly regulated environments.
• Cloud-Native Expertise: Deep expertise in cloud-native architecture on AWS (including API Gateway, Lambda, ECS/EKS, RDS, S3, CloudFront, and IAM).
• Modern Architecture Patterns: Strong practical knowledge of API-first design principles, REST/GraphQL, event-driven architectures, microservices, and domain-driven design.
• Automation & Tooling: Proficiency with infrastructure-as-code tooling (such as Terraform, AWS CDK, or CloudFormation) and CI/CD pipeline design (eg, Jenkins, GitHub Actions).
• Security Knowledge: Comprehensive understanding of secure-by-design principles, cloud security guidance (eg, NCSC), and government security classifications (OFFICIAL, OFFICIAL-SENSITIVE).
• Communication & Artefacts: A proven track record of producing high-quality architectural artefacts (C4 models, ADRs) and confidently translating complex technical decisions for non-technical senior stakeholders.
• Agile Assurance: Experience working through all phases of agile delivery and actively contributing to formal government digital service assessments (such as GDS assessments).

Desirable Skills & Experience

• Legacy Migration: Prior experience with Legacy Mainframe modernisation and large-scale migration patterns.
• Large Data Estates: Familiarity with operating and architecting within extremely large data estates (handling upwards of 50 million records).
• Emerging Technologies: Awareness of emerging technologies and how they apply to public sector delivery, such as AI/ML on AWS, digital identity (eIDAS), or biometrics.
• Professional Certifications: Recognised architecture certifications, such as TOGAF or AWS Certified Solutions Architect Professional.
• Tech Stack Familiarity: Practical experience supporting and designing for Java SpringBoot Back End microservices and Ruby on Rails Front End architectures.

Refer to guidance at https://ddat-capability-framework.servicegov.uk/role/solution-architect for breadth and depth of relevant skills.

• Work on a high-impact UK public sector digital programme, delivering services used by millions
• Opportunity to be based in Swansea, with relocation support of up to £5,000
• Visa sponsorship available for eligible candidates
• Strong focus on work-life balance with a flexible hybrid model (3 days onsite)
• Be part of a collaborative, multidisciplinary agile environment alongside civil servants and industry experts

Based in Swansea, South Wales - three days per week on-site

This role requires three days per week at our client's Swansea offices and we want to be straightforward about that. Swansea is a coastal city offering a genuinely excellent quality of life: lower cost of living than London or Birmingham, shorter commutes, and the kind of work-life balance that is hard to find elsewhere. If you have spent years commuting into a major city, working three days a week by the sea without taking a pay cut may be more appealing than you expect. The work is meaningful too, public sector digital delivery that directly impacts people's lives across the UK. We also offer relocation support of £3,000 - £5,000 to help make the move straightforward., What we offer

• Competitive salary with annual review
• Company pension scheme
• Generous annual leave entitlement
• Critical illness cover
• Relocation support of £3,000 - £5,000
• Visa sponsorship for eligible candidates
• Access to learning and development resources
• A supportive, inclusive working environment

Scrumconnect Consulting is a multi-award-winning digital consultancy whose work has positively influenced the lives of over 40 million UK citizens. We deliver impactful technology solutions across UK government departments, working at the forefront of user-centred design, agile delivery, and scalable digital services that genuinely make a difference.