Solutions/Technical Architect - Microservices | Event-Driven | Public Cloud - SC Cleared

Location: Multiple UK locations - Blackpool, Leeds, Newcastle, Birmingham, Manchester, Sheffield (base location depends on placement)

Work Pattern: Hybrid - 2-3 days onsite per week (varies by placement)

Duration: 5 to 12 months

Rate: £640 per day

IR35 Status: Inside IR35

Clearance: Active SC Clearance

Overview

We are seeking experienced Solutions and Technical Architects to support a major Central Government Department's digital transformation portfolio. Placements span several concurrent programmes, covering identity and security architecture, enterprise SaaS and event-driven solution design, and Legacy-to-cloud service migration. Roles are based across Blackpool, Leeds, Newcastle, Birmingham, Manchester and Sheffield depending on placement, working within Agile delivery environments. You will produce and assure architecture artefacts, engage senior technical and business stakeholders, and translate complex technical decisions into clear solution views. This is an opportunity to shape critical citizen-facing services at enterprise scale within a secure-by-design, GDS-aligned environment.

Key Responsibilities

• Design and govern enterprise security capabilities including Zero Trust architecture, Privileged User Access Management (PUAM), and identity and access controls
• Lead technical design for the migration of Legacy platforms and services onto modern, cloud-native and hybrid hosting environments
• Design and assure both functional and non-functional solution architectures for large-scale, distributed digital services
• Develop technical designs supporting Role-Based Access Control (RBAC), Identity Governance and Administration (IGA), and enterprise identity strategy
• Produce a consistent set of solution views that communicate the construction of solutions to technical and non-technical stakeholders
• Champion solution communication, translating complex architecture decisions into clear, accessible guidance
• Identify and implement architecture patterns to resolve technical debt and reduce ongoing IT costs
• Collaborate with engineering and delivery teams to shape scalable, resilient, event-driven service architectures
• Support governance forums and produce architecture artefacts aligned to organisational standards and best practice

Essential Skills

• Strong commercial experience as a Solutions, Technical, or Enterprise Architect within complex, large-scale environments
• Hands-on experience designing microservices, APIs, and event-driven/event-based architecture, including pub-sub and data streaming
• Experience with public cloud technologies and design patterns (AWS, Azure, or GCP)
• Experience with Domain-Driven Design (DDD) and distributed systems architecture
• Working knowledge of Zero Trust architecture, identity and access management, and IAM/IGA principles
• Experience designing architecture across on-premise, cloud, and hybrid hosting environments
• Strong stakeholder engagement and influencing skills, including with senior technical and business audiences
• Previous experience within the UK Public Sector, ideally on Central Government transformation programmes
• Active SC Clearance

Nice To Have

• Experience with SaaS product selection and implementation
• Familiarity with NIST, CIS, and Secure-by-Design principles
• Exposure to DWP or other large-scale citizen-facing service delivery
• Experience with AWS, Java/Spring Boot, Kafka, and MongoDB technology stacks