Lead Solution Architect

As Lead Solution Architect, you shape architecture for national NHS programmes, translating ambitious plans into practical, scalable designs. You will lead a small team across multiple directorates, aligning architecture roadmaps with governance and strategy to enable data-driven care at national scale. You’ll influence executive stakeholders and drive cross‑organisational collaboration while mentoring staff and fostering a community of practice. This is a mission‑critical role at the heart of NHS England’s digital transformation.

• Recruitment and Retention Premia (RRP) 20%
• Permanent contract
• Flexible working
• Office-based time (approx. 40%)
• Salary band 8d, competitive package
• Opportunity to shape national NHS programmes

• Accountable for architecture across a portfolio of national products and programmes, coordinating internal staff and suppliers
• Lead and influence 5–10 staff across directorates and complex programmes
• Drive team decision making and manage relationships with executive stakeholders at board level
• Develop and maintain NHS England technical governance, architectural roadmaps and contribute to strategic planning
• Maintain broad technical experience across Data, Security, Applications and Platforms
• Mentor and develop team members and contribute to the architecture function and community of practice
• Participate in architecture governance, including attendance at relevant Boards
• Influence direction across NHS England, DHSC, arm’s length bodies and suppliers
• Provide strategic direction for multi‑million‑pound technical spending decisions
• Demonstrate leadership in architectures for complex national‑scale systems

• Substantial industry IT experience with deep subject-matter expertise
• Proven technical leadership across large, complex programmes
• Experience implementing large-scale Big Data platforms
• Knowledge of architecture frameworks, methodologies and applicable methods
• Team leadership with matrix‑organisational management experience
• Experience developing and managing technical governance processes
• Excellent communication and stakeholder engagement skills
• Masters in Computing or equivalent (or equivalent experience)
• Experience with cloud platforms and multi-cloud/enterprise-scale designs
• Demonstrated leadership in national-scale architectures

• strategic thinking
• stakeholder engagement
• mentoring and people development
• Cloud platforms knowledge (multi-cloud, cost optimisation)
• Apache Spark data platform services and architectures
• Big Data platform implementation