Data Engineer
Job summary
Are you passionate about health and social care and looking for a role that offers flexibility and growth? At North East and North Cumbria Integrated Care Board, we value work-life balance and offer a range of flexible working options, including hybrid working. Enjoy a supportive team environment, competitive salary, and opportunities for professional development. Apply now to make a difference in our community!
We are seeking a dedicated and experienced Data Engineer to join our Insights team. At North East and North Cumbria Integrated Care Board, we are committed to providing high-quality care and support to our community.
Please note this post is only accepting applications from current staff of North East and North Cumbria Integrated Care Board and staff members of North of England Commissioning Support (NECS) .
Main duties of the job
As a Data Engineer, you will play a key role in developing, maintaining and supporting data pipelines and data processing solutions that enable the ICB and its partners to make effective use of complex health and care data.
You will support the extraction, transformation, loading, validation and testing of data from a range of sources, working to agreed specifications, standards and change control processes. The role will involve using SQL and scripting or analytical languages such as Python or R to automate data processes, improve reliability and support the production of high-quality analytical outputs.
The postholder will help diagnose and resolve issues within data pipelines, identify data quality problems, maintain technical documentation and support the deployment of data solutions into live operational environments. You will work closely with colleagues across insight, analytics, digital and IT teams, translating requirements into technical solutions and explaining data processes and issues clearly to both technical and non-technical audiences.
This is a hands-on technical role suited to someone who is methodical, analytical and keen to improve the way data is processed, managed and made available for insight.
About us
Our Integrated Care Board (ICB) is the largest in the country.
The ICB is responsible for ensuring that high quality and safe health services are accessible to all of our communities. It has a wide range of functions, including; promoting integration of health and care services, improving peoples health and well-being, reducing health inequalities.
With a £6.6 billion budget and a workforce of 170,000 people across the North East and North Cumbria. As well as strategic functions, ICB staff also work at place level with local health and wellbeing boards in each of our 14 local authority areas. These teams also work alongside our 67 primary care networks which are groups of local GP practices, social care teams and other community- based area providers.
The ICB works with our Provider Collaborative too, this includes the 11 NHS Foundation Trusts in the region, to deliver our shared priorities.
Job description
Job responsibilities
Developing extraction, transformation, loading, validation and testing processes for complex data, working to agreed specifications and standards.
Implementing and maintaining automated data processes, including scripting in Python or R and workflow automation, ensuring solutions are robust and reliable.
Developing, modifying and supporting data pipelines or data processing solutions in production or operational environments.
Diagnosing and resolving data pipeline, data quality or processing issues, identifying root causes and taking corrective action within agreed parameters.
Supporting the deployment of data solutions into live operational environments in line with change and release management processes.
Identifying opportunities to improve data quality, efficiency, reliability and automation through agreed governance routes.
Supporting testing and evaluation of new tools, processes or approaches to data engineering.
Assisting with the training, support and development of junior colleagues where appropriate.
Ensuring all work complies with information governance, data protection, confidentiality, IT security and organisational policies.
Person Specification
Qualifications
- Educated to degree level or equivalent experience.
- Evidence of relevant training or learning in data, analytics, or digital systems.
Experience
- Experience of extracting, transforming, validating, and loading data from multiple sources using structured approaches.
- Practical experience using SQL and at least one scripting or analytical language (e.g. Python or R) to manipulate, validate, or analyse data.
- Experience of working to defined standards, procedures, and change control processes in a data, digital, or analytics environment.
- Experience of working collaboratively with data, analytics, digital, or IT colleagues to deliver agreed outputs.
- Experience of maintaining technical documentation for data processes or systems.
- Experience of working in a regulated or information-governed environment (e.g. healthcare, public sector).
- Experience of designing or enhancing data pipelines or automated processes, rather than solely operating existing ones.
- Experience of supporting or contributing to data platform migrations, upgrades, or new implementations.
- Experience of performance tuning or optimisation of data processes within agreed technical frameworks.
- Experience of contributing to overall team design.
Knowledge
- Knowledge of data engineering and data processing principles, including extraction, transformation, validation, and loading of data.
- Knowledge of relational databases and data structures, and how data is stored, queried, and maintained.
- Knowledge of data quality management, including common data issues and methods for validation and cleansing.
- Knowledge of cloud-based or enterprise data platforms and associated tooling.
- Knowledge of basic data architecture concepts, such as staging layers, data flows, and integration patterns.
- Understanding of monitoring, logging, and alerting for data processes.
- Knowledge of version control and collaborative development practices.
- Knowledge of working in a regulated or public-sector environment, such as healthcare.
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
North East & North Cumbria ICB
Address
Pemberton House
Colima Avenue
Sunderland
SR5 3XB
United Kingdom
Employer's website
https://northeastnorthcumbria.nhs.uk/