Details
Reference number
426860
Salary
£67,609
Roles based in London will receive an additional London Weighting Allowance of £4,218 per annum, subject to annual review.
This position attracts a Recruitment and Retention Allowance (RRA) of £3,000 per annum as an addition to the advertised salary, subject to annual review.
A Civil Service Pension with an employer contribution of 28.97%
GBP
Job grade
Grade 7
NCA Grade 2 / Police Superintendent
Contract type
Permanent
Fixed term
Loan
Secondment
Length of employment
This role is available on a permanent basis. Candidates may opt for a 24-month Fixed Term Appointment, Loan or Secondment if appropriate.
Business area
NCA - DDaT
Type of role
Architecture and Data
Working pattern
Flexible working, Full-time, Job share, Part-time
Number of jobs available
1
Contents
* Location
* About the job
* Benefits
* Things you need to know
* Apply and further information
Location
Belfast; Birmingham; Bristol; Calder (Normanton); Leicester; London*; Warrington
* For roles based in London, your contractual place of work will be Stratford. While the Stratford site is expected to become operational from November 2025 – March 2026, you will be required to carry out your contractual duties from Vauxhall or another reasonable location on a temporary basis during the interim period. Please note that, as Stratford will be your contractual place of work, any subsequent move from a temporary location will not entitle you to payments for travel time or costs under the Relocation and Excess Travel Policy.
About the job
Job summary
We are currently looking to recruit a Lead Enterprise Architect to provide strategic technical leadership and architectural direction at the heart of the NCA's transformation agenda. This pivotal role will shape how technology enables the Agency's mission by ensuring that all programmes, platforms and services are aligned to a coherent enterprise-wide vision. Working closely with senior stakeholders, delivery leads and other architects, you will drive the development and adoption of architectural roadmaps, standards and principles that support strategic outcomes, enable interoperability and reduce technical debt. You will play a key role in design governance and assurance, providing authoritative oversight to ensure that solutions are scalable, secure and fully aligned with business and operational objectives across a complex, multi-tiered estate.
This role aligns to Lead Enterprise Architect within the Government Digital and Data Profession Capability Framework.
If you would like to find out more about this role and the application process we will be holding a virtual opening evening via MS Teams on Wednesday 17th September 2025 at 6.00pm.
This event is by invitation only.
To register, please click on the following link DDaT VIRTUAL EVENT.
You will be asked for your name and email address. Please ensure that you spell your email address correctly.
Registration will close on Tuesday 16th September at 12:00pm. You will not be able to register after this date and time.
Please see our Privacy Policy for details on how your data is handled.
Job description
The Digital Data and Technology (DDaT) Directorate is responsible for creating a cutting-edge technology and information environment that connects, empowers and enhances our Officers' crime fighting capabilities.
We are responsible for defining and delivering our data and technology strategy, policy and architecture, building and sustaining resilient services which are critical to our mission success. We work closely with our operational teams to help them do their job in the most effective and efficient way, understanding their challenges and combining this with emerging technologies/techniques to obtain and exploit data in innovative ways to ensure we stay ahead of the criminals who are committing some of most serious crimes and inflicting harm to our society.
Are you ready to join the team?
Duties and Responsibilities
* Provide strategic technical leadership and architectural direction to drive the design and delivery of capabilities and services that enable and enhance the Agency's business and operational priorities.
* Working under the direction of the Chief Architect, define and continuously evolve the strategic direction for all IT-related domains within the NCA, ensuring coherence with wider HMG technology strategies and standards.
* Establish, own and maintain architectural principles, enterprise design patterns, reference models, blueprints and multi-year roadmaps that underpin all IT design and transformation activity.
* Embed enterprise architecture within project and programme lifecycles by leading the integration of design governance, including the operation of design gates, assurance checkpoints and decision forums.
* Ensure reference architecture documentation is accurate, accessible and maintained to support consistency, reusability and accelerated delivery across the Agency.
* Maintain a deep and current understanding of emerging technologies and industry trends across infrastructure, networks, platforms, cloud services, applications, and data — bringing this insight to bear on strategic planning and solution direction.
* Provide architectural oversight and assurance across the change portfolio, ensuring solutions align to strategic objectives, are technically viable, and comply with security, operational and regulatory standards.
* Act as a senior architectural representative at governance forums such as the Technical Design Authority (TDA) and Architectural Assurance Board (AAB), championing architectural principles, assuring technical quality and shaping enterprise decision-making.
* Shape and influence investment and transformation portfolios by contributing architectural insight to business cases, benefit realisation plans and technology evaluation.
* Foster collaborative engagement with delivery teams, suppliers, and partners to ensure architectural integrity across all layers of design and delivery.
* Act as a senior leader for the architectural community, supporting the professional development of solution, data, security, and technical architects through mentoring, coaching, and setting high standards.
* Manage, coach, and develop staff in line with NCA values and performance expectations, promoting a culture of continuous improvement, accountability and professional growth.
Person specification
* Demonstrable experience leading large-scale enterprise transformation programmes, including defining enterprise architecture vision, shaping multi-year roadmaps and ensuring coherent execution across multiple business domains and delivery workstreams.
* Proven ability to drive strategic alignment across diverse business and technology functions, ensuring enterprise architecture effectively links organisational goals with technology decisions and programme outcomes.
* Deep expertise in architectural governance, including the definition and maintenance of principles, standards and design patterns, and the operation of governance forums such as design authorities and assurance boards.
* Experience leading the development of reference architectures and enterprise-wide blueprints, and ensuring their adoption across project and programme delivery in complex environments.
* A strong track record in supporting and coaching domain architects (e.g. solution, data, security) to ensure enterprise consistency, technical integrity and alignment to architectural standards.
* Practical experience working in hybrid cloud/on-premises environments, advising on legacy migration, digital enablement and technology modernisation across infrastructure, platforms, applications and data.
* In-depth understanding of enterprise architecture frameworks (e.g. TOGAF) and practical application of structured architectural methods, tools, and modelling standards,
* Familiarity with public sector and government digital standards, including experience working within governance constraints and aligning architecture to GDS or equivalent frameworks.
Desirable criteria, only to be assessed in the event of a tie break
* Experience leading complex, large-scale application rationalisation, consolidation and migration Programmes or projects, in an enterprise architecture role.
* The ability to work with business and technology stakeholders to translate business problems into technical designs for systems characterised by high levels of risk, impact and business or technical complexity.
* Experience identifying relevant technology for an organisation, including establishing the business case for its adoption and standards to govern its implementation.
Behaviours
We'll assess you against these behaviours during the selection process:
* Leadership
* Seeing the Big Picture
Technical skills
We'll assess you against these technical skills during the selection process:
* Demonstrable experience leading large-scale enterprise transformation programmes, incl. defining enterprise architecture vision, shaping multi-year roadmaps, and ensuring coherent execution across multiple business domains and delivery workstreams.
* Proven ability to drive strategic alignment across diverse business and technology functions, ensuring enterprise architecture effectively links organisational goals with technology decisions and programme outcomes.
Benefits
Alongside your salary of £67,609, National Crime Agency contributes £19,586 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides.
New entrants to the NCA receive 26 days annual leave, rising to 31 on completion of 5 years continuous service, plus 8 bank holidays.
If qualifying criteria is met new joiners from UK Police Forces or the UK Intelligence Community (UKIC) will have service with those employers taken into account for continuous service purposes for annual leave entitlement only, this will be up to a maximum of 31 days leave (including 1 privilege day).
Other benefits include:
*
o Flexible working, including flexi-time, compressed hours and job sharing (in line with business requirements).
* Family friendly policies, notably above the statutory minimum.
* Learning and Development opportunities.
* Interest free loans and advances, including season tickets, childcare and rental deposits.
* Housing schemes - Key Worker status.
* Discounts and Savings with a wide variety of services including Cycle to Work, Smart Tech schemes, dental insurance, gym discounts and savings on everyday spending, available through the Reward Gateway, Edenred and Blue Light Card schemes.
* Staff support groups/networks.
* Sports and social activities, including membership to the Civil Service Sports Council (CSSC).
Things you need to know
Selection process details
This vacancy is using Success Profiles, and will assess your Behaviours, Experience and Technical skills.
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.
How we will assess you
Your application will be assessed against the following:
Experience - This will be assessed by the following:
CV
Please include your full career history, training, qualifications, key responsibilities, and achievements. Explain any employment gaps in the last two years. Ensure all accreditation dates are accurate.
Details of what is expected within you CV are as follows: Your CV should consist of your career history, qualifications and skills including any key achievements in each role. It will be used to provide further context on your personal statement and scored against the skills and experience set out in the person specification, detailed in the job description.
Statement of Suitability
Please provide a 1,250 word personal statement demonstrating how you meet the criteria below.
The Personal Statement should be aligned to and demonstrate how you meet the skills and experience set out in the person specification, detailed in the job description.
A panel will assess how well your application demonstrates the requirements outlined above.
You will receive an acknowledgement once your application is submitted.
We aim to have sift completed and scores released within 10 working days of the closing date of the advert. For high volume campaigns this timeframe may be extended.
Scores will be provided but further feedback will not be available at this stage.
For guidance on the application process, visit: NCA Applying and Onboarding
Assessment 1
The format of this assessment will be Interview which will be tested on the criteria listed in the Success Profiles at Assessment section.
Success Profiles at Assessment
Behaviours
* Leadership
* Seeing the Big Picture
Technical
* Demonstrable experience leading large-scale enterprise transformation programmes, including defining enterprise architecture vision, shaping multi-year roadmaps, and ensuring coherent execution across multiple business domains and delivery workstreams.
* Proven ability to drive strategic alignment across diverse business and technology functions, ensuring enterprise architecture effectively links organisational goals with technology decisions and programme outcomes.
Experience
* Architectural thinking, relevant experience and how you approach complex delivery within the given domain, aligned to the person specification, detailed in the job description.
Presentation
Applicants that are invited to interview will be asked to deliver a presentation based on the below criteria:
You will be asked to deliver a 10 minute presentation at interview. This will be on the Experience criteria listed within the advert. The presentation scenario will be provided ahead of the interview.
Assessment Outcome
Outcomes will be communicated via the NCA recruitment portal.
If successful but no role is immediately available, you may be placed on a reserve list for 12 months.
In the event of a tie at the assessment stage, available roles will be offered in merit order using the following order:
* Lead criteria (behaviours/technical/experience)
* If still tied, desirable criteria will be assessed (if advertised)
* If still tied, application sift scores will be used
Feedback is provided only to those who attend an assessment.
You will be subject to vetting and pre-employment checks before appointment.
Once the vacancy closes, the advert will no longer be accessible. Please save a copy for your records.
We encourage all candidates to visit the NCA Careers Page for more information.
Full advert details for this vacancy can found on the advert on the NCA Recruitment Portal. Please follow the link to apply at advertisers' site.
Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.
Security
Successful candidates must meet the security requirements before they can be appointed. The level of security needed is security check .
See our vetting charter .
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)
* 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
Working for the Civil Service
The Civil Service Code 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 .
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.
The Civil Service also offers a Redeployment Interview Scheme to civil servants who are at risk of redundancy, and who meet the minimum requirements for the advertised vacancy.
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 and the Civil Service Diversity and Inclusion Strategy .
Apply and further information
This vacancy is part of the Great Place to Work for Veterans initiative.
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 :
* Email :
Recruitment team
* Email :
Further information
If you believe your application has not been treated fairly, email: (quoting the vacancy reference). If unresolved, you may escalate your complaint to the Civil Service Commission.