Amber Labs
Lead Software Engineer
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Lead Software Engineer
Location: Remote (UK) with occasional travel to Manchester (approximately once every other month for team meetings and workshops)
Employment Type: Permanent or 12-Month Fixed Term Contract (FTC)
Security Clearance: BPSS Eligible
Lead the Delivery of Secure Digital Services for UK Government
At Amber Labs, we're a people-first technology consultancy delivering secure, innovative digital solutions across UK Central Government. We work on large-scale transformation programmes that improve public services, helping government organisations deliver better outcomes for millions of people across the UK.
We're looking for an experienced Lead Software Engineer to join one of our key government programmes. This is an exciting opportunity to take a technical leadership role, working with modern cloud technologies to build secure, scalable applications that have real-world impact.
If you enjoy solving complex technical challenges, mentoring engineers and delivering high-quality software within Agile teams, we'd love to hear from you.
What You'll Be Doing
As a Lead Software Engineer, you'll:
- Lead the design and development of cloud-native, microservices-based applications.
- Develop and maintain secure REST APIs using Node.js and/or Java.
- Work with event-driven architectures using Kafka and Amazon SQS.
- Build and deploy applications using Docker, Kubernetes and AWS.
- Manage infrastructure using Terraform and support automated deployments through GitLab CI/CD.
- Collaborate with Architects, Product Managers, Business Analysts and QA Engineers to deliver high-quality solutions.
- Mentor developers, promote engineering best practice and help shape technical direction.
- Champion clean code, continuous improvement and modern software engineering principles.
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What We're Looking For
You'll bring experience in:
- JavaScript (Node.js) and/or Java.
- Building RESTful APIs.
- Developing cloud-native microservices.
- Kubernetes and container orchestration.
- Docker and containerisation.
- AWS services, including ECS, SQS and Cognito.
- Terraform for Infrastructure as Code (IaC).
- GitLab and CI/CD pipelines.
- Event-driven architectures using Kafka and Amazon SQS.
You'll also have:
- Experience leading or mentoring software development teams.
- Strong communication and stakeholder engagement skills.
- Experience working within Agile delivery environments.
- Previous experience delivering projects within UK Central Government.
- Eligibility to obtain BPSS Clearance.
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Why Join Amber Labs?
At Amber Labs, we're passionate about creating an environment where talented people can do their best work. We value collaboration, innovation and continuous learning, giving our teams the opportunity to grow while working on projects that genuinely make a difference.
We offer:
- 25 days annual leave plus bank holidays.
- Private medical insurance with Bupa.
- Remote-first working with occasional travel to Manchester.
- Access to our Liverpool Street office whenever you'd like.
- A personal training budget to support your professional development.
- Perkbox membership with hundreds of discounts and rewards.
- Electric Vehicle Scheme (after one year's service).
- Employer pension contributions.
- Regular company socials and team events.
- The opportunity to work on meaningful projects that help shape the future of UK public services.
Apply Today
If you're looking for your next leadership opportunity and want to work on secure, cloud-native solutions that make a real impact across UK Central Government, we'd love to hear from you.
Join Amber Labs and help build the next generation of digital public services.
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