Senior Enterprise Architect
Job summary
Are you ready to be at the forefront of one of the most ambitious digital transformations in England? Do you want to shape the future of health and care for millions of people, driving innovation that improves lives every day?
We're seeking experienced and forward-thinking Senior Enterprise Architects who thrive in complex environments and are passionate about driving meaningful change. You'll bring a strong foundation in architectural principles, an understanding of the digital health and care landscape, and the ability to translate strategic vision into practical delivery.
You will work across programmes, products, and services, spanning architectural domains and leading discussions to ensure delivery is aligned to strategy. You could be assigned to many and varied initiatives including for example, defining the re-establishment of architectural governance and embedding related processes, supporting cohesive product and service delivery by NHSE programmes to the wider health and care ecosystem, or assisting in corporate programmes such as exploring operational efficiency opportunities, resulting from recent and upcoming organisational change.
If you're unsure whether your experience aligns, we encourage you to reach out to us, we'd be happy to have a conversation.
Main duties of the job
To undertake this role, you will use your strong analytical and architectural design skills along with a proven ability to challenge assumptions and drive consensus across roles and functions. Have excellent communication skills and an ability to collaborate effectively with diverse stakeholders within a complex environment.
Your experience working in the digital delivery space will ensure that our portfolio is aligned to organisational strategy, that agreed architectural principles are adhered to, and that initiatives successfully navigate the relevant architectural governance processes.
Main Duties of the Role
- Develop and maintain enterprise architecture artefacts, including target state models and transition plans.
- Conduct architectural design reviews and propose improvements to enhance products and mitigate risk through to solution implementation.
- Support governance forums, ensuring compliance with NHS architecture principles and policies.
- Collaborate with stakeholders to support development of an actionable future state of architecture across England.
- Collaborate with solution and data architects, engineers, and clinical teams to deliver integrated solutions.
- Identify opportunities for operational and financial efficiency through proposals to rationalise the estate, collaborating cross-functionally to support implementation and improve adoption.
- Contribute to business process improvement and digital innovation initiatives.
About us
NHS England has a wide range of statutory functions, responsibilities and regulatory powers. These are focused on supporting the wider NHS to deliver high quality care, as well as doing those things that are best done once for the whole NHS.
Our staff bring expertise across clinical, operational, commissioning, technology, data science, cyber security, software engineering, education, and commercial specialisms -- enabling us to design and deliver high-quality NHS services.
In March 2025, the Government announced that NHS England and the Department of Health and Social Care will increasingly merge functions, ultimately leading to NHS England being fully integrated into the department.
If you currently work within the NHS and if successful at interview, we will initiate an Inter Authority Transfer (IAT) via the Electronic Staff Record (ESR).This retrieves key data from your current or previous NHS employer to support onboarding, including competency status, Continuous Service Dates (CSD), and annual leave entitlement. You may opt out at any stage of the process.
Colleagues with a contractual office base are expected to spend, on average, at least 40% of their time working in our offices.
Staff recruited from outside the NHS will usually be appointed at the bottom of the pay band.
Job description
Job responsibilities
You can find further details about the role, including key responsibilities and accountabilities, alongside the organisational structure and person specification in the attached Job Description and other supporting documents.
The post of Senior Enterprise Architecture has been awarded a Recruitment and Retention Premia (RRP) in response to current labour market conditions. In recognition of this, the role attracts an additional monthly RRP payment equal to 20% per annum.
Please be aware that RRP is non-contractual and subject to review.
Person Specification
Qualifications
- Educated to Master's level or equivalent experience
- TOGAF 9 Certified or working towards
Skills
- Advanced knowledge of EA domains (business, data, application, technology), with proven expertise in at least one, and a solid understanding of how domains interconnect within complex environments
- Understanding of financial planning principles, business case development, and experience in procurement and commercial processes within programme delivery
Experience
- Experience contributing to architecture governance, actioning policy, and strategic planning at programme or organisational level, with the ability to support alignment to national priorities
- Demonstrable experience in governance, stakeholder engagement and influence, assurance, business process improvement and the creation of enterprise architecture models & artefacts to consistent standards, using an architecture repository
- Experience supporting the management of initiatives and contributing to team leadership, including coordination of people, processes, and risk within multidisciplinary environments
Disclosure and Barring Service Check
This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service (formerly known as CRB) to check for any previous criminal convictions.
Employer details
Employer name
NHS England
Address
Any NHS England Office
Nationally
LS1 4AP
Employer's website
https://www.england.nhs.uk/about/working-for/