Senior Developer

This is an opportunity to play a leading role in one of the Commission’s most significant digital projects. As our Senior Developer, you will help bring voter information services in-house, supporting the transfer and ongoing development of an established service that helps people find election information quickly and easily. You will provide technical leadership, work closely with colleagues across the organisation and contribute to the development of secure, scalable and accessible services that support democracy across the UK.

Working within a multidisciplinary product team, and alongside experts from Democracy Club, you will contribute to technical decision-making, mentor colleagues and ensure our digital services are built to the highest standards of quality, performance and security., * Developing, maintaining and enhancing digital services using Python, Django and AWS.

• Providing technical leadership and mentoring developers within the team.
• Taking responsibility for all stages of the software development lifecycle.
• Troubleshooting, diagnosing and resolving service issues to maintain performance and reliability.
• Using research, testing and user feedback to inform development decisions.
• Designing and implementing solutions with security and resilience at their core.
• Working with internal stakeholders, external partners and product teams to deliver successful outcomes.

Person specification

About the team

You’ll join our Digital Communications team, part of the Communications and External Affairs Directorate. We’re a vibrant, collaborative and agile team responsible for delivering high-quality digital experiences through web content, digital projects and social media activity that support our organisational priorities and engage audiences across the electoral community.

Working closely with colleagues across communications, technology and product teams, you’ll help shape the future of voter information services. You’ll build strong relationships across a diverse stakeholder landscape, bringing together data, systems and technical expertise to unlock new opportunities for voter engagement. You’ll identify innovative solutions, influence technical approaches and help maximise the potential of future developments, integrations and digital opportunities.

We embrace agile ways of working and a culture of continuous improvement, where collaboration, innovation and knowledge sharing are encouraged. You’ll have the opportunity to influence how we deliver digital solutions and work with a range of internal and external partners, including Democracy Club, to drive the successful evolution of our voter information services.

This is an exciting opportunity to join a highly engaged team where building relationships, working collaboratively and responding creatively to digital content challenges are key to success., We are committed to fair and inclusive recruitment. To help reduce unconscious bias and ensure all applicants are assessed solely on their skills, knowledge and experience, we use an anonymous recruitment process., * Gender, ethnicity, nationality or other personal identifiers

• A photo of yourself
• Remove educational dates as these are a clear indication of your age
• There is no requirement to include your primary education details.

Do include:

• Your employment history including employers and dates of employment
• Explanation for gaps in your history
• Your duties, responsibilities and achievements

If your CV contains personal details (such as your name or contact information), we will be unable to consider your application. Please double-check your documents before submitting, including the file name you use to save and upload your CV.

Supporting disabled applicants

The Electoral Commission is proud to be a Level 2 Disability Confident Employer. As part of this commitment, we aim to prioritise interviews for disabled applicants who meet the essential criteria listed in the job description.

There may, however, be occasions where it is not practicable or appropriate to interview all disabled applicants who meet the essential criteria. For example, during periods of exceptionally high application volumes or seasonal recruitment activity, the Commission may need to limit the overall number of interviews offered to both disabled and non-disabled applicants.

If you have a disability and would like to be considered under this commitment, please indicate this when you apply. We also welcome requests for reasonable adjustments at any stage of the recruitment process or within the workplace. Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment., * 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, We aim to respond to all complaints within two working days.

Our Commitment

All complaints are treated seriously and in confidence. They are handled in line with our Recruitment Policy and the relevant provisions of the Equality Act 2010, Employment Rights Act 1996, and the Data Protection Act 2018.

We’re looking for someone who is genuinely excited by the opportunity to shape the future of voter information services in the UK. This role would suit a technically strong developer who enjoys exploring what’s possible, working collaboratively with others and using technology to solve complex real-world challenges.

We’re seeking someone who is energised by the potential of the project, motivated by improving voter engagement and curious about how emerging opportunities, legislative changes and evolving user needs can be translated into innovative digital solutions.

You’ll be comfortable operating across both technical and stakeholder environments, building strong working relationships and helping others understand the art of the possible. You’ll enjoy bringing together data, systems and people to create seamless user experiences and will be excited by the opportunities presented by future developments, including changes arising from the Representation of the People’s Bill and broader democratic reforms.

Successful candidates will bring:

• Significant experience with Python, Django, AWS, PostgreSQL, Parquet files and ETL pipelines.
• Strong knowledge of web technologies, APIs and modern development practices.
• Experience managing, securing and integrating complex datasets within digital products.
• Experience scaling services to support large numbers of users during periods of high demand.
• A passion for developing services that improve voter engagement and support democratic participation.
• Curiosity, creativity and a desire to explore new opportunities, integrations and technical solutions.
• The ability to build credibility and strong relationships with a wide range of stakeholders, translating technical concepts into clear, practical outcomes.
• An understanding that great digital services are shaped as much by collaboration, user insight and stakeholder engagement as they are by technology.
• A commitment to accessibility, security and continuous improvement.

It would be advantageous if you also have experience with:

• Spatial databases such as PostGIS.
• GIS software such as QGIS or ESRI products.
• AddressBase or other geographical datasets.
• Elections, democratic processes or local government structures., Successful candidates must undergo a basic (or equivalent) criminal record check. People working with government assets must complete baseline personnel security standard (opens in new window) checks.

Pulled from the full job description

• Annual leave
• Company pension, Alongside your salary of £69,000, The Electoral Commission contributes £19,989 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides .
• 28 days rising to 30 days annual leave + bank holidays
• Performance related pay
• Civil Service pension scheme (28.97% employer contribution)
• Study support for professional qualifications
• Ongoing learning and development opportunities

The Electoral Commission is the UK’s independent body overseeing elections and regulating political finance. Everything we do is about ensuring trust, participation, and integrity in the democratic process.