Job Description
Principal Data Architect
Location: National*
Closing Date: 14th November
Interviews: 1st & 3rd December
Grade: 6
(MoJ candidates who are on a specialist grade, will be able to retain this grade on lateral transfer)
Salary (for more information, please refer to the T&Cs at the bottom):
London: £75,674 - £93,025 (which may include an allowance up to £17,351)
National: £71,381 - £88,900 (which may include an allowance up to £17,519)
Working pattern: full-time, part-time, flexible working
Contract Type: Perm
Vacancy number: 11330
*We offer a hybrid working model, allowing for a balance between remote work and time spent in your local office. Office locations can be found ON THIS MAP
The Role
We’re recruiting for a Principal Data Architect here at Justice Digital, to be part of our warm and collaborative Data Architecture team.
This role aligns against the Chief Data Architect role from the Government Digital and Data Framework
We’re establishing a dedicated Data Architecture function to support the Ministry of Justice’s growing and evolving needs – enabling delivery of strategic and transformational priorities, such as the independent sentencing review recommendations. This is an exciting opportunity for a Principal Data Architect to shape the department’s architecture from the ground up, leading an end-to-end journey from concept to implementation.
As our first permanent Principal Data Architect, you’ll lead the Data Architecture profession and help define how data is structured, governed, and made accessible across prisons, courts, probation, and more. As the Principal Data Architect, you’ll report to the Chief Data Architect and work in close partnership with the Heads of Data teams across multiple portfolios, ensuring our data foundations are robust, interoperable, and future-ready. You will build and lead a team of talented data architects, work closely with engineers, analysts, and digital teams, and shape the future of how we design, govern, and manage data at the Ministry of Justice (MoJ).
This role sits within the newly established Chief Technology Office (CTO), which leads the Ministry’s technology strategy and delivery across prisons, agencies, probation services, and the MoJ corporate centre. The CTO works across the Chief Digital and Information Office (CDIO) to shape principles, processes, design patterns and roadmaps that underpin resilient, secure and cost-effective technology solutions. As part of this team, you’ll contribute to shaping a compelling 3–5 year vision, enable and support strategic and analytical initiatives for the Director of CDIO, and help model modern ways of working. You will champion rapid prototyping, cross-functional collaboration, and performance-driven prioritisation.
To help picture your life at MoJ Justice Digital please take a look at our blog and our Digital and Technology strategy 2025
Key Responsibilities
- Build and lead a team of Data Architects, fostering a collaborative and inclusive culture.
- Enable and support professional development through mentoring, coaching, and clear career pathways.
- Champion data architecture as a strategic enabler across the organisation.
- Define and embed architectural standards, principles, and patterns for data across MoJ systems.
- Oversee data model development and alignment across programmes, ensuring reusability and consistency.
- Ensure alignment with enterprise architecture and data governance frameworks.
- Stay close to emerging tools, technologies, and methods, bringing fresh thinking from industry and government.
- Represent MoJ in government-wide data architecture communities and working groups.
- Be the Head of Profession for Data Architecture, working closely with the capability and GDS leads.
- Ensure consistent standards are understood and applied within the wider profession, and support profession leads in driving continuous improvement across Justice Digital.
- Work with the other heads of profession and leads to ensure consistency across GDD professions.
- Ensure effective use of L&D budgets.
- Ensure we attract, develop and retain high calibre talent within the profession, building the digital capability, skills and competencies needed within Justice Digital and across the MoJ.
If this feels like an exciting challenge, something you are enthusiastic about, and want to join our team please read on and apply!
Benefits
- 37 hours per week and flexible working options including working from home for part of the week, working part-time, job sharing, or working compressed hours.
- A £1k per person learning budget is in place to support all our people, with access to best in class conferences and seminars, accreditation with professional bodies, fully funded vocational programmes and e-learning platforms
- Staff have 10% time to dedicate to develop & grow
- Generous civil service pension based on defined benefit scheme, with employer contributions of 28.97% from April 1st 2024 (Contribution Rates)
- 25 days leave (plus bank holidays) and 1 privilege day usually taken around the Kings’ birthday. 5 additional days of leave once you have reached 5 years of service.
- Compassionate maternity, adoption, and shared parental leave policies, with up to 26 weeks leave at full pay, 13 weeks with partial pay, and 13 weeks further leave. And maternity support/paternity leave at full pay for 2 weeks, too!
- Wellbeing support including access to the Calm app.
- Nurturing professional and interpersonal networks including those for Carers & Childcare, Gender Equality, PROUD and SPIRIT
- Bike loans up to £2500 and secure bike parking (subject to availability and location)
- Season ticket loans, childcare vouchers and eye-care vouchers.
- 5 days volunteering paid leave.
- Some offices may have a subsidised onsite Gym.
Person Specification
Essential:
- Deep expertise in data architecture or related fields (e.g. technical architecture, data engineering).
- Demonstrable knowledge of cloud-based architecture (e.g., Azure / AWS / GCP) and appropriate tech stack, including open-source tools.
- Proven experience leading technical direction and delivering data architecture solutions across large, complex organisations, with a customer-centric mindset that aligns strategies to business outcomes.
- Ability to influence and collaborate with senior stakeholders across technical and non-technical domains, applying commercial and financial understanding to shape strategy.
- Track record of building, leading, and developing high-performing technical teams, fostering a collaborative and inclusive culture.
Willingness to be assessed against the requirements for SC clearance.
We welcome the unique contribution diverse applicants bring and do not discriminate based on culture, ethnicity, race, nationality or national origin, age, sex, gender identity or expression, religion or belief, disability status, sexual orientation, educational or social background or any other factor.
Six Months in – Building the Women in Engineering Working Group.
Our values are Purpose, Humanity Openness and Together. Find out more here about how we celebrate diversity and an inclusive culture in our workplace.
The Civil Service is committed to attract, retain and invest in talent wherever it is found. To learn more please see the Civil Service People Plan and the Civil Service D&I Strategy.
How to Apply
Candidates must submit a CV and a Supporting Statement, which describes how you meet the requirements set out in the Person Specification above.
Please note, failure to provide both documents will result in a rejection of your application.
In Justice Digital, we recruit using a combination of the Government Digital and Data Profession Capability and Success Profiles Frameworks. We will assess your Experience, Technical Skills and the following Behaviours during the assessment process:
- Leadership
- Communicating and Influencing
- Seeing the Bigger Picture
A diverse panel will review your application against the Person Specification above.
Successful candidates who meet the required standard will be invited to a 1-hour panel interview held via video conference. Candidates will also be required to provide a 5-minute presentation during the interview stage. Details of the presentation will be sent across prior to interview.
Should we receive a high volume of applications, a pre-sift based on the first essential criteria, “Deep expertise in data architecture or related fields (e.g. technical architecture, data engineering)”, will be conducted before the sift.
Should you be unsuccessful in the role that you have applied for but demonstrate the capability for a role at a lower level, we reserve the right to discuss this opportunity with you and offer you the position without needing a further application.
A reserve list may be held for up to 12 months, from which further appointments may be made.
Use of Artificial Intelligence
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 see our candidate guidance for more information on appropriate and inappropriate use.
Please Note
Recruitment Process Notice
This role is being delivered in partnership with PeopleScout, our managed recruitment service provider. As part of the recruitment process, your personal data will be shared with PeopleScout for the purposes of candidate assessment, communication, and selection.
PeopleScout will process your data on behalf of the Ministry of Justice in accordance with the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR) and the Data Protection Act 2018. Your data will be handled securely, used only for recruitment purposes, and retained only as long as necessary.
The Ministry of Justice processes your personal data under the lawful bases of:
- Contractual necessity – to assess and progress your application,
- Legal obligation – for checks such as right to work,
- Legitimate interest – to improve recruitment processes and ensure fair selection.
You have the right to:
- Access your personal data,
- Request correction or deletion,
- Restrict or object to processing,
- Request data portability.
Your data will be retained for up to 12 months following the recruitment process or the duration of the appointment, whichever is shorter, after which it will be securely deleted.
For more information on how your data will be used and your rights under data protection law, please refer to our https://justice.gov.uk/privacy or contact the MoJ Data Protection Team at data.protection@justice.gov.uk
Terms & Conditions
Please review our Terms and Conditions which set out how we recruit and provide further information related to the role and salary arrangements.
If you have any questions, please feel free to contact digitalanddatarecruitment@justice.gov.uk
