Senior Software Developer

Do you have a passion for delivering user focused digital services and using the latest technology to deliver solutions to a global audience of millions?

Are you enthusiastic about clean code, well designed software and mentoring others to enable them to work at their best?

If the answer to the above is yes, we would love you to join us and be part of our team to help us build the future of our Digital Services!

The majority of our teams are primarily based in our Cardiff head office. The teams are a mix of hybrid and fully remote workers.

We are currently using a hybrid approach to the way we work. Remote contracts will only be offered to successful candidates who are not within a commutable distance to our Cardiff, Belfast or Edinburgh offices. If you are located in a reasonable distance to one our offices, you will receive a hybrid contract aligned to one of our offices.

Our approach to hybrid working provides opportunities for you to be adaptable in the way you work so that you can achieve a healthy balance between your work and home life. We currently expect people to attend their base office a minimum of one day a week but the exact degree of choice you have will depend on your role and your day-to-day work activities and should be agreed through discussions with your line manager.

Job description

As a Senior Developer you'll join one of our many Agile Software Development teams. A typical team is made up of an agile delivery manager, developers, testers, user researchers, analysts and a product owner.

You’ll be responsible for:

Designing efficient and maintainable solutions Contributing and adhering to our technical standards Mentoring software engineers in your team and the wider software development community Maximising the automated test coverage to help move to continuous delivery Ensuring code quality through code reviews What it is like to work in Companies House:

Inclusive and diverse teams are important to us. Wherever possible we offer flexible working arrangements. We'll support you to meet other commitments and help you strike a better work-life balance. We’re keen to create an environment that works for everyone, and we particularly encourage applications from different underrepresented demographics.

Half a day a week is devoted to Innovation time where everyone in digital can work on whatever they choose, be that building new applications, trying new technologies or working towards certifications, it’s up to you. In addition to this we offer lots of opportunities to have training as and when it is needed. We trust and empower our staff to work in a way which best suits them.

Companies House is an award-winning employer, With an Investors in People Platinum Award we are at the forefront in ensuring our staff reach their full potential in building brilliant services on cutting-edge technology. You’ll be joining our Software Engineering Profession at a time of transformation and you will be a part of shaping the future of our department. We use Agile Methodologies and promote a culture of continuous improvement.

Person specification

We are looking for the following experience and technical skills, which will be assessed at sift and interview. Please refer to the bullet points below when writing your personal statement.

Experience - please refer to this in your personal statement

You'll have extensive software engineering experience of more than 3 years, with excellent technical skills and the ability to complete detailed design. A degree in computing or similar would be an advantage You'll have a passion for high quality, well-crafted code, and associated tooling You embrace continuous integration and have a continuous delivery mindset You are patient and can help support and mentor others with different degrees of expertise to maximise their potential You have excellent communication skills and can help explain complicated technical issues to individuals who don’t share the same technical experience Essential:

Recent experience as a Java or JavaScript/Node developer in an agile software engineering environment Experience of coaching and mentoring junior developers – including through techniques such as pair programming Experience of developing software throughout the delivery lifecycle Desirable:

You have experience designing and building RESTful APIs and supporting them in a live production environment We will also be assessing the following technical skills - please refer to this in your personal statement

Essential:

Strong knowledge of programming tools, frameworks, and techniques in at least one of the following ecosystems: Java and/or Node (you will be expected to learn the other once in post as required according to business needs) Application of good working practices such as test-driven and behaviour-driven development (TDD/BDD), pair programming, version control/branching strategies, and application of design patterns Knowledge of all key full stack web technologies, including use of relational and noSQL databases Desirable:

Knowledge of any of the following technologies/approaches: Golang, TypeScript, Kafka, Deployment pipeline tooling (e.g. Concourse), Infrastructure as Code, Elasticsearch, MongoDB Knowledge of cloud-first micro-service driven architecture Knowledge of WCAG 2.1 accessibility guidelines, and experience implementing to meet at least “AA” standard Behaviours

We'll assess you against these behaviours during the selection process:

Changing and Improving Making Effective Decisions Technical skills

We'll assess you against these technical skills during the selection process:

Development Process Optimisation Programming and build System design User focus and systems integration

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £33,134, Companies House contributes £8,946 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides. Join us at Companies House and experience the difference of working within a culture that values you, not only as an employee, but as an integral part of our Companies House team.

We believe that our success is driven by the well-being and satisfaction of our team members at all levels of the organisation. At Companies House we’re committed to providing a comprehensive benefits package that goes beyond the ordinary, ensuring your career journey with us is not only fulfilling, but also rewarding. We pride ourselves on offering a quality work-life balance with our employee wellbeing being central to our working practices.

Head to Our benefits - Working for us - Recruitment (companieshouse.gov.uk) to find out more about the fantastic benefits package we have at Companies House.

We celebrate diversity...

As an equal opportunity employer, we celebrate diversity, being committed to ensuring we’re representative of the citizens we serve and creating an inclusive environment. Everyone in Companies House brings something different, and so will you. To fulfil our commitment to recruiting and attracting diverse talent we welcome applications from underrepresented groups. We also welcome applications from Welsh speakers.

We are proud to be a disability confident leader.  Our recruitment process is fully inclusive and we can make adjustments as needed through our process. These could include having an interview buddy, extra time at interviews/assessments and receiving interview questions in advance, to name a few. We will be happy to discuss any person-centred adjustments, please contact us by emailing recruitmentCH@companieshouse.gov.uk

Where will you be working?

We're currently exploring options for new office space in the Cardiff and surrounding areas as we're due to be moving from our current building - join us on this journey where we can support you in your career and professional growth. Details are still being confirmed about our new building and we're keeping all our colleagues updated.

Things you need to know Selection process details This vacancy is using Success Profiles (opens in a new window), and will assess your Behaviours, Strengths, Experience and Technical skills.

In your application form we’d like you to:

Tell us about your employment history, including any key responsibilities and achievements that align to the advert Write a personal statement of 750 words where you demonstrate how you meet the technical skills and experience required that are detailed in the person specification At sift candidates will be assessed against experience and technical skills and are asked to supply work history/personal statement and reference any transferable skills using the job description for reference, paying particular attention to the person specification. Your personal statement should refer to the experience and technical skills in the bullet points section of the person specification.

At interview candidates will be assessed against the behaviours and experience listed in the advert and we will use Success Profiles Behaviours and Strengths. There will be a technical element to the interview, followed by questions based on the behaviours and experience listed.

We’re committed to being diverse and inclusive, so please make your application anonymous by removing all identifying personal information (such as names and dates) from your employment history and personal statement.

What will the process look like?

• We will sift applications and then invite successful candidates from the sift stage to attend a virtual interview. Read more information and guidance about Applying for Your New Job.
• Companies House uses a blended interview technique, allowing us to find out more about you. We use the Success Profile framework and may include Strength based questions in the interview.
• Our recruitment process is underpinned by the principle of recruitment based on fair and open competition with decisions made on the basis of merit, as outlined in the Civil Service Commissioners’ Recruitment Principles.
• Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.

Security

Successful candidates must undergo a criminal record check. People working with government assets must complete baseline personnel security standard (opens in new window) checks. Nationality requirements

This job is broadly open to the following groups:

• 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) (opens in a new window)

• 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 Further information on nationality requirements (opens in a new window) Working for the Civil Service The Civil Service Code (opens in a new window) sets out the standards of behaviour expected of civil servants.

• We recruit by merit on the basis of fair and open competition, as outlined in the Civil Service Commission's recruitment principles (opens in a new window).

• The Civil Service embraces diversity and promotes equal opportunities. As such, we run a Disability Confident Scheme (DCS) for candidates with disabilities who meet the minimum selection criteria.

• The Civil Service also offers a Redeployment Interview Scheme to civil servants who are at risk of redundancy, and who meet the minimum requirements for the advertised vacancy.

• Diversity and Inclusion

• The Civil Service is committed to attract, retain and invest in talent wherever it is found. To learn more please see the Civil Service People Plan (opens in a new window) and the Civil Service Diversity and Inclusion Strategy (opens in a new window).

Apply and further information

This vacancy is part of the Great Place to Work for Veterans (opens in a new window) initiative. Once this job has closed, the job advert will no longer be available. You may want to save a copy for your records. Contact point for applicants

Further information

We welcome applications from Welsh speakers.

Selection for appointment to the Civil Service is on merit, on the basis of fair and open competition, as outlined in the Civil Service Commission’s Recruitment Principles. In accordance with the Civil Service Commissioners’ Recruitment Principles, our recruitment and selection processes are underpinned by the requirement of appointment on the basis of merit by fair and open competition. If you feel your application has not been treated in accordance with the Recruitment Principles and you wish to make a complaint, you should contact infopoint@companieshouse.gov.uk in the first instance. If you are not satisfied with the response you receive you can contact the Civil Service Commission .