Junior Software Developer - The National Archives - EO

London, London (region), TW9 4DU

The National Archives is growing our Digital, Data and Technology (DDaT) capability to help us transform the way we offer services to our users. As a member of the Digital Services Department, you will actively participate in product teams delivering user-focused products for The National Archives' core audience groups.

We have a track record of delivering high quality, innovative and ambitious digital services to diverse audiences. You will be part of a creative, motivated and supportive multi-disciplinary team who embrace challenge and look for opportunities to do things differently.

These are especially exciting times as we reimagine our whole offering on the web to realise the 'disruptive digital archive' and open up access to one of the largest and most diverse digital archives in the world. We are exploring new approaches and tools, simplifying key transactions and finding new ways to help people to use our collections.

Our developers have a vital role to play in this. We are looking for a motivated and creative individual to join The National Archives Digital Services team as a Junior Software Developer.

About The National Archives
We are the official archive for the UK Government and for England and Wales, holding millions of records dating back over 1,000 years. From the Domesday and Shakespeare's will to military service records, censuses and court judgements we preserve and provide access to these important public records for everyone.

Our Digital Services department is made up of several agile multi-disciplinary teams focusing on different products or services. Our purpose is to design and deliver user-centred services that make our collections accessible, usable, and relevant to a wide range of audiences.

Our Digital Services team build and run services used by over 1 million people a month to access more than 30 million record descriptions, the catalogues of more than 3,000 archives and educational and rich, interpretative content bringing the collection to life. We are exploring new approaches and tools, simplifying key transactions and finding new ways to help people to use our collections.

In this role you will:
Contribute to a range of activities across the digital teams at The National Archives including design, coding and testing of services.
Develop your problem-solving skills and apply these to real-world situations for our digital services.
Use information security best practices and available security controls to protect the solutions and services you help build.
Work within multidisciplinary teams to deliver user stories through the full software development lifecycle, from user experience through to cloud hosting and support
You will have a willingness to learn new skills across a range of technologies and play an active role in helping us grow our digital capability, skills and culture.

This is a full-time post, but requests for part-time working, flexible working and job share will be considered, always taking into account the operational needs of the Department. A combination of onsite and home working is available and applicants should be able to regularly travel to our Kew site for a minimum of 60% of their work time.

Development and progression
This is a development role, designed for progression to the role of mid-level Software Developer. At the start of your employment your skills will be assessed in order to design a tailored development plan for you. We'll provide active support and guidance as you progress through your plan. Development will be assessed on a regular basis, and you will be promoted to the higher grade once you have met the required standard.

• Essential Criteria:
  Hands-on experience in Python-based back-end development, with working knowledge of information security practices, principles of modern development standards and designing systems components.
  A fundamental understanding of database design, querying and data integrity.
  Understanding of RESTful API design and integration.
  Strong problem-solving skills and attention to detail with an enthusiasm for creating high quality, user-focused digital products and services
  Have a passion for technology and a desire to develop yourself and the team's skills in any technologies that might benefit The National Archives
  Highly motivated with a proven ability to manage competing priorities and deliver to deadlines, working independently or as part of a multi-disciplinary team
  Knowledge of HTML, CSS, JavaScript and relevant W3C recommendations including those on accessibility
  Good communication and interpersonal skills, with the ability to explain complex and/or technical issues and concepts to non-specialists and to provide advice and guidance based on experience and sound judgment

Application Process:

• Interview: Interviews will be held on-site and will include a technical test.

• Personal Statement: We ask all applicants to provide work history details and complete a personal statement, not exceeding 1200 words

Selection for interview will be based on the essential criteria listed above so please provide evidence and examples for each criteria separately, and ensure that your statement demonstrates in detail how you meet these criteria.

Artificial Intelligence can be a useful tool to support your application, however, all examples and statements provided must be truthful, factually accurate and taken directly from your own experience. Where plagiarism has been identified (presenting the ideas and experiences of others, or generated by artificial intelligence, as your own) applications may be withdrawn and internal candidates may be subject to disciplinary action. Please visit the civil service careers website where you can find further information on the use of AI in the application guidance section.