> Markdown version of [/jobs/ext/1582373-principal-data-engineer-we-have-office-locations-in-cambridge-leeds-and-london](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/jobs/ext/1582373-principal-data-engineer-we-have-office-locations-in-cambridge-leeds-and-london). Every page supports `.md` or `Accept: text/markdown`. Links point to the HTML versions so they work for humans too. Agent guide: [/agents.md](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/agents.md).

---

# Principal Data Engineer (we have office locations in Cambridge, Leeds and London)

- **Company:** Genomics England
- **Location:** Leeds, UK (Remote available)
- **Experience:** Expert
- **Salary:** £84,687.0
- **Contract:** Temporary contract
- **Skills:** Airflow, Data Analysis, Big Data, Clinical Data Repository, Cloud Computing, Computer Programming, Continuous Integration, Data Architecture, Information Engineering, Data Systems, DevOps, Medical Software, Information Lifecycle Management, Python (Programming Language), Metadata, DataOps, SQL Databases, Workflow Management Systems, Enterprise Data Management, Data Processing, Fast Healthcare Interoperability Resources, Event Driven Architecture, Infrastructure Automation Frameworks, Information Technology, AWS Glue, Data Management
- **Published:** July 11, 2026
- **Apply:** https://www.adzuna.co.uk/jobs/details/5795881605

## About the Role

Contributing to organisation wide technical communities, standards and design governanceWhat we are looking for Proven experience operating at senior or Principal level in data engineering
Strong track record of designing and successfully delivering enterprise scale data platforms and systems
Deep experience with modern data architecture, cloud infrastructure and scalable data processing systems
Strong hands-on programming experience, i.e. Python and SQL
Strong expertise in data modelling, data lifecycle management, metadata and governance
Experience working in complex regulated environments such as healthcare, genomics or research
Strong understanding of security by design and handling highly sensitive data
Proven ability to influence architectural and data engineering direction across multiple teams or domains
Strong stakeholder engagement skills, with experience influencing senior technical and non-technical stakeholders in matrix environmentsDesirable Experience with genomics, bioinformatics or clinical data platforms
Familiarity with GA4GH, OMOP or FHIR standards
Experience with orchestration tools such as Airflow, Prefect or AWS Glue
Experience with modern data architecture patterns such as data mesh or Lakehouse approachesThis is a rare opportunity to define how data engineering operates at national scale in a regulated, mission driven organisation. As an experienced Principal Data Engineer with a strong and demonstrable track record, you will help set direction, shape standards others build to, and directly influence the maturity and reliability of critical data platforms, while staying close enough to the engineering to make a real hands-on impact! Qualifications, Degree in Computer Science, IT or equivalent practical industry experience

## Description

medical discoveries and create more effective, targeted medicines for everybody. Behind the Healthcare and Research outcomes, Genomics England delivers through designing, developing and operating complex healthcare software systems. We're on the cusp of big changes with the real prospect of genomics becoming the fabric of everyday healthcare through the lifetime - from birth to old age. Job Description Principal Data Engineer At Genomics England, we're seeking an experienced Principal Data Engineer with a proven track record of senior technical leadership across highly complex data engineering environments. This is a senior individual contributor role operating at Principal level, where you will set technical direction and influence data engineering strategy across complex, regulated, national scale clinical and research platforms. You will shape how we design, build and operate scalable, secure and highly reliable data platforms. This includes defining standards, patterns and data
engineering approaches that multiple teams will align to and deliver against. This is a hands-on leadership role. You will stay close to data engineering, code and delivery where it matters, while also operating at both architectural and strategic level to guide direction, influence technical decisions, raise data engineering maturity, and build capability across the organisation. Working across data engineering, data architecture, product and governance, you will ensure our data platforms are robust, interoperable and aligned to organisational and national priorities, including highly sensitive clinical and research data. This Principal level opportunity is aimed at experienced, hands-on data engineering leaders, not analytics, reporting or data analysis professionals. What you will be doing Setting technical direction and influencing data engineering standards across data platforms, pipelines and data products used by multiple teams
Leading the design and delivery of complex, large scale data solutions across cloud and hybrid environments
Influencing architectural direction for enterprise data platforms, including Lakehouse, distributed and event driven systems
Acting as a technical authority across squads, influencing alignment to data engineering standards and data architectural principles
Working closely with senior engineers, architects, bioinformaticians, data colleagues and product teams to influence delivery and technical decision making
Ensuring all data engineering approaches meet strict governance, privacy, security and regulatory requirements
Driving adoption and influencing use of modern engineering practices including DataOps, DevOps, CI/CD, infrastructure as code, automation and observability
Improving platform resilience, performance and operational maturity across critical data systems
Evaluating and influencing adoption of new tools, technologies and data engineering approaches where appropriate
Mentoring experienced data engineers and influencing capability uplift across teams


## Related Videos

- [From Messy Queries to Scalable Systems - How Data Engineering actually works](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/videos/100203-from-messy-queries-to-scalable-systems-how-data-engineering-actually-works)
- [From DevOps to Scaled DevOps: How We’re Rebuilding Continuous Delivery as a Platform](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/videos/100018-from-devops-to-scaled-devops-how-we-re-rebuilding-continuous-delivery-as-a-platform)
- [Enjoying SQL data pipelines with dbt](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/videos/823-enjoying-sql-data-pipelines-with-dbt)
- [AI Model Management Life Circles: ML Ops For Generative AI Models From Research to Deployment](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/videos/1152-ai-model-management-life-circles-ml-ops-for-generative-ai-models-from-research-to-deployment)
- [DevOps Maturity Check – a way to balance autonomy and alignment](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/videos/58-devops-maturity-check-a-way-to-balance-autonomy-and-alignment)
- [Modern Data Architectures need Software Engineering](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/videos/1030-modern-data-architectures-need-software-engineering)

## Related Articles

- [Data Engineer Salary UK](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/magazine/253-data-engineer-salary-uk)
- [Data Analyst Salary in the UK](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/magazine/278-data-analyst-salary-in-the-uk)
- [Software Engineer Salary London](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/magazine/252-software-engineer-salary-london)
- [The Most Popular IT Jobs on the Market](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/magazine/376-the-most-popular-it-jobs-on-the-market)
- [Software Engineer Salary in The UK](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/magazine/231-software-engineer-salary-in-the-uk)
- [The 12 Best Jobs for Software Engineers](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/magazine/401-the-12-best-jobs-for-software-engineers)