Lead Software Developer (SPM) (5593)
Dundee, Glasgow • Permanent • Competitive
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Lead Software Developer (SPM) (5593)

New Easy Apply
Dundee, Glasgow On-site Permanent 29 Applications
Competitive
Full-time
Posted 04 Nov 2026
Expires 04 Dec 2026

Job description

  • Job grade: Grade 7
  • Contract type: Permanent
  • Business area: SSS - Chief Digital Office
  • Type of role: Other
  • Working pattern: Full-time
  • Number of jobs available: 2

Location

Dundee, Glasgow

About the job

Job summary

The role sits within the Digital, Delivery & Change (DD&C) Engineering team, which builds and maintains technical services for Social Security Scotland. This includes an enterprise case management system and a range of supporting technical services, used by Clients to submit benefit applications and our internal teams to manage benefit payments.

Our technical staff are largely deployed in Agile teams focusing on new benefits development, live service support and continuous improvement. We believe in supporting our team members' growth and development through their work – the successful candidate will have access to formal training courses and team learning projects to enhance their technical and non-technical skills.

We also aim to develop a positive and inclusive culture within Social Security Scotland by embedding a working environment where we all treat each other with dignity, fairness and respect, and recognise each other’s contributions.

A lead software developer (SPM) leads development on one or a small number of related project teams.

At this role level, you will:

• guide the ways in which the team works
• be involved in identifying appropriate technology and approaches, deciding when software should be written
• contribute to the developer community
• provide technical leadership, coaching and mentoring your team
• promote knowledge sharing and adoption of good practice

GDD Pay Supplement
This post is part of the Government Digital and Data (GDD) profession and currently attracts a £6000 annual GDD pay supplement, which is paid monthly - pay supplements are reviewed regularly.

Job description

  • You manage service components to ensure they meet business needs and performance targets.
  • You identify process optimisation opportunities with guidance and contribute to the implementation of proposed solutions.
  • You participate in the information security process.
  • You design and implement embedded security controls in solutions and services.
  • You apply the most appropriate modern standards and practices, and coach and guide others in these standards.
  • You advise on the right way to apply standards and methods to ensure compliance.
  • You maintain technical responsibility for all the stages and iterations of a software development project.
  • You provide technical advice to stakeholders and set the team-based standards for programming tools and techniques.
  • You participate in team prototyping.
  • You advocate for the use of prototypes and testing with others.
  • You use a variety of prototyping methods and choose the most appropriate.
  • You provide technical direction to others to identify, locate and fix faults.
  • You select appropriate methods and tools, and ensure they are applied effectively.
  • You review the systems designs of others to ensure the selection of appropriate technology, efficient use of resources and integration of multiple systems and technology.
  • You co-ordinate build activities across systems.
  • You prioritise and define approaches to understand the user story, guiding others in doing so.
  • You offer recommendations on the best tools and methods to use.

Person specification

Success Profiles
We use an assessment framework called ‘Success Profiles’ which lists the elements we test and provides detailed descriptions of each. Find out more about the framework here.

For this post, the following Success Profile elements will be assessed:

Experience:

  1. Your experience writing high complexity programs using Curam Social Program Management (SPM) allows you to provide technical advice to stakeholders and set the team-based standards for programming tools and techniques.
  2. Your extensive software engineering experience means that the team around you becomes measurably better through your leadership, with them relying on you as a go-to person.


Behaviours:

  • Seeing the Big Picture - Level 4
  • Leadership - Level 4

You can find out more about Success Profiles Behaviours here.

Technical skills:
This role is aligned to Lead Developer within the Government Digital and Data Profession.

These skills will be tested during the Technical Assessment if you are successful at sift stage. They will not be assessed at application stage. Please review the following to understand the skill expectations: Software developer - Government Digital and Data Profession Capability Framework

Benefits

Annual Leave - You will receive 25 days annual leave on joining us. This will increase to 30 days after two full years of service. You will also have 11.5 public and privilege days of leave every year. We also offer Flexi-time. Any extra hours you've worked can be taken as leave when suitable.

A Civil Service Pension - This job comes with a Civil Service pension. New joiners to the Civil Service will join a career average pension scheme as standard. Read more here - www.civilservicepensionscheme.org.uk.

Healthy work life balance - We can offer the possibility of full-time, part-time, term-time, and job shares. We also encourage flexible working.

Discounts - You can enjoy a vast range of retail, travel and lifestyle discounts through our benefit scheme.

Personal support for you - Our Employee Assistance Programme gives you confidential, independent information and guidance 24/7.

Volunteering special leave - Up to six days paid special leave a year for volunteering. We support our staff to help causes important to them.

Great locations - Our bright and modern offices in the heart of Dundee and Glasgow have been designed with staff in mind. Both locations are ideal for public transport.

Things you need to know

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 (opens in a new window) for more information on appropriate and inappropriate use.

Selection process details

Expected Timeline (subject to change)
Sift - week commencing 23rd November 2026
Interview – week commencing 7th December 2026
Location - In Person in either Dundee or Glasgow

To apply please submit an application form by clicking on the ‘Apply at Advertisers Site’ button.



Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.

Security

Successful candidates must undergo a basic (or equivalent) criminal record check.
People working with government assets must complete baseline personnel security standard (opens in new window) checks.

Nationality requirements

This job is broadly open to the following groups:

  • UK nationals
  • nationals of the Republic of Ireland
  • nationals of Commonwealth countries who have the right to work in the UK
  • nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities with settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS) (opens in a new window)
  • nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities who have made a valid application for settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS)
  • individuals with limited leave to remain or indefinite leave to remain who were eligible to apply for EUSS on or before 31 December 2020
  • Turkish nationals, and certain family members of Turkish nationals, who have accrued the right to work in the Civil Service
Further information on nationality requirements (opens in a new window)

Working for the Civil Service

The Civil Service Code (opens in a new window) sets out the standards of behaviour expected of civil servants.

We recruit by merit on the basis of fair and open competition, as outlined in the Civil Service Commission's recruitment principles (opens in a new window).
The Civil Service embraces diversity and promotes equal opportunities. As such, we run a Disability Confident Scheme (DCS) for candidates with disabilities who meet the minimum selection criteria.

Diversity and Inclusion

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 (opens in a new window) and the Civil Service Diversity and Inclusion Strategy (opens in a new window).

Apply and further information

This vacancy is part of the Great Place to Work for Veterans (opens in a new window) initiative.
The Civil Service welcomes applications from people who have recently left prison or have an unspent conviction. Read more about prison leaver recruitment (opens in new window).
Once this job has closed, the job advert will no longer be available. You may want to save a copy for your records.

Contact point for applicants

Job contact :

  • Name : Resourcing Team
  • Email : Recruitment@socialsecurity.gov.scot
  • Telephone : 08001577194

Recruitment team

  • Email : Recruitment@socialsecurity.gov.scot

Further information

Apply at advertiser's site

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