Details
Reference number
426873
Salary
£45,219 - £49,462
* DDaT Allowance of up to £12,181
A Civil Service Pension with an employer contribution of 28.97%
GBP
Job grade
Senior Executive Officer
Contract type
Permanent
Business area
PINS - Corporate Services - Research & Development Service
Type of role
Digital
Information Technology
Working pattern
Flexible working, Full-time, Compressed hours
Number of jobs available
1
Contents
* Location
* About the job
* Benefits
* Things you need to know
* Apply and further information
Location
Bristol, South West England, BS1 6PN
About the job
Job summary
Are you ready to make a real impact in public service through technology? The Planning Inspectorate is looking for a Senior DevOps Engineer to join our dynamic Digital and Data Services team as we rise to meet increasing demands from colleagues, government, and the public.
As a Senior DevOps Engineer, you'll play a key role in a multidisciplinary team, helping to shape and support the development and operation of our digital services. From casework management systems to public-facing websites and internal tools, your work will directly contribute to modernising and driving efficiency.
You'll be working as part of a focussed team supporting focused on service delivery and continuous improvement. You'll be a part of the wider Developer Community of Practice where you'll have peer support and opportunities to share both knowledge and problems.
The Planning Inspectorate has a long and proud history in ensuring a fair planning system for England. The work we do has a significant impact on people's lives, the communities where they live and the economy.
We're undergoing a major transformation, refreshing the systems that support our core services and redesigning how we deliver them across all channels. Modern technology is at the heart of this change, improving service delivery for both internal and external users.
It's a great time to join the Planning Inspectorate as a DevOps Engineer. We're investing heavily in our people, systems, and tools to ensure digital services are central to everything we do. Our commitment is reflected in our Civil Service People Survey results, which place us among the top performers.
To meet growing demand from colleagues, government, and customers, our Digital Services team is expanding. We're increasing capacity and capability to deliver outstanding digital, data, and technology services. This is a high profile, business critical role, and we're looking for a motivated, dynamic individual to join us during this exciting period.
We want our colleagues to be able to work more flexibly and more collaboratively, exploring new and innovative ways to improve the way we provide services.
For further information on the Planning Inspectorate, please visit our careers page at Civil Service Careers
Job description
You will be responsible for working collaboratively as part of a multidisciplinary team, focused on delivering high quality code and infrastructure in line with project goals and delivery cycles. As well as this you will be working with a team of Developers, DevOps engineers and Testers where team members are supported and developed to enable them to fulfil their potential and contribute fully to the success of the organisation.
As a DevOps Engineer, you will provide technical recommendations and assurance within the team to identify the best technology and solutions to support integration and deployment of applications.
You will also keep up to date with the latest technologies and trends, whilst delivering working software early and often, learning new languages and frameworks and picking the right solutions.
Our Tech Stack
We rely heavily on:
* Azure for our infrastructure
* Azure DevOps for our CI/CD pipelines
* Terraform for our Infrastructure as Code
* GitHub to host and manage our code
* Docker and Web Apps for Containers
* NodeJS for our back-end code
* HTML/CSS/JavaScript for our web interfaces
* UK Design System for our web interfaces
* Azure SQL for data storage
We're happy to help you learn our tech stack once you are part of our team.
Check out GitHub for a closer look at the technology we use.
Salary
New entrants to the Civil Service are expected to start on the minimum of the pay band. Internal rules apply to existing Civil Servants, i.e. level transfers move on current salary or the pay range minimum, transfers on promotion move to new pay range minimum or receive 10% increase. Either case is determined by whichever is the highest.
This role is being advertised at SEO Grade.
Salary range for the Grade role is £45,219 - £49,462 plus a DDAT allowance of up to £12,181 based on Capability and base salary.
Working hours:
Standard working week is 37 hours, flexible working hours policy available.
Office Attendance
This role is contractually based at Temple Quay House, Bristol which is currently out of use due to undergoing refurbishment work. In the interim, we have the use of alternative office space in very close proximity to Bristol Temple Meads railway station. We recognise and value the mutual benefits of hybrid working and have a flexible approach to in person attendance, which can vary dependent on the requirements of individual business units - the details of which can be discussed with candidates if invited to attend an interview.
Person specification
We will assess your application against the Essential Criteria listed:
Essential Criteria
* Experience applying a modern standards approach (using the latest technologies and best practices to improve the quality of the software development process).
* Experience with Azure and Azure DevOps
* Excellent troubleshooting and problem-solving skills, including experience of supporting services.
* Experience with open-source technologies including Terraform and Git.
* A working knowledge of DevOps principles and processes.
* Experience identifying process optimisation opportunities and contributing to implementation of these optimisations.
* Understanding of information security and ability to design solutions and services with security controls embedded.
* Effective interpersonal and communication skills.
Desirable Criteria
* Experience of JIRA or other management tooling
* Knowledge of the Government's Digital strategies and codes of practice
* Awareness and understanding of industry standard security issues and processes. An understanding of ISO27001 would be an advantage.
Experience
* See Essential Criteria
For guidance on how to structure your application please visit: About the application process, Civil Service Careers
Behaviours
We'll assess you against these behaviours during the selection process:
* Delivering at Pace
* Changing and Improving
* Working Together
* Managing a Quality Service
Technical skills
We'll assess you against these technical skills during the selection process:
* Provisioning Infrastructure
* Build and Release Pipelines
Benefits
Alongside your salary of £45,219, Planning Inspectorate contributes £13,099 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides.
* Flexible working options, including flexi-time, part-time, compressed hours and home working if suitable for the role.
* A working culture which encourages inclusion and diversity.
* 25 days annual leave increasing by 1 day per year up to 30 days after 5 years, plus 1 privilege day to mark the King's birthday. In addition to the normal bank holidays.
* Generous family friendly policies.
* Fast and modern IT kit which utilises Windows 11 and Microsoft 365, enabling seamless working from home and collaboration across teams.
Things you need to know
Selection process details
This vacancy is using Success Profiles, and will assess your Behaviours, Experience and Technical skills.
Application
Complete the online application form on Civil Service Jobs which requires the following information:
* A CV: The CV section lets you share your job history. List your jobs, how long you worked at each, and briefly describe your roles and duties. Make sure to show how your experience matches the essential criteria of the job you're applying for. Type or paste this information into the 'Employment History' box in the online application. You can't attach your CV.
* A Personal Statement (750 words max): The personal statement lets you explain why you're a good fit for the job in more detail. Use it to show how you meet the essential criteria listed in our advert.
If there are many applications, we might use a lead sift. This means we'll first check if you meet the key requirement listed below. If you don't, we won't review the rest of your application.
* A working knowledge of DevOps principles and processes.
All shortlisted candidates will be advised of the outcome shortly afterwards.
Interview
If you are shortlisted, you will:
* Be asked to attend an interview to have a more in-depth discussion about your experience and suitability for the role
* Interviews will be a blend of behaviour, experience and technical questions
Candidates who pass the shortlist stage will receive full assessment details with their interview invitations.
Other Information
Shortlist Date: w/c 29th September 2025
Interview Date: w/c 6th October 2025
Interviews will be held remotely using MS Teams. The interview will not be recorded or retained, other than usual interview protocol and in line with Civil Service Jobs privacy notice.
Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Recruitment
The Civil Service Careers site has published a new page for candidates, covering what they should consider before using AI in their applications or interviews. Please click on the link below:
Artificial intelligence and recruitment
Reserve list
A reserve list may be held for a period of 9 months from which further appointments can be made.
Future Matches
Candidates who demonstrate strong potential and future readiness but score just below the required level at interview may be considered for alternative positions. These roles may be at a lower grade but align with their skills and offer opportunities for growth.
We encourage all candidates to make themselves familiar with the role and what we will be assessing you against which is detailed in the Person Specification.
ID and Documents
If the job needs specific qualifications or memberships and you get the job, you'll need to send scanned or photographed images of them before you start.
We must check that any successful candidates are allowed to work for the Civil Service before we employ them. If successful, you will be asked to do a right to work check using identity document validation technology (IDVT) through the services of an Identity Service Provider (IDSP), Civil Service Jobs. If we are unable to confirm your right to work and through the IDVT we will need to do a manual right to work check using original documents with you in person.
Visa Sponsorship
The Planning Inspectorate cannot offer Visa sponsorship to candidates, we do not hold a Visa sponsorship licence.
Disability Confident Interview scheme/Reasonable Adjustments
The Civil Service values diversity and offers equal opportunities. We have a Disability Confident Interview scheme for candidates with disabilities who meet the job's minimum criteria. We will also provide reasonable adjustments to all where possible. For more information please see Reasonable Adjustments, Civil Service Careers.
Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.
Security
Successful candidates must undergo a 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)
* 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.
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 : Adam Thompson
* Email :
Recruitment team
* Email :
Further information
If you feel your application has not been treated in accordance with the Principles and you wish to make a complaint, you should contact in the first instance: The Vacancy Manager via the Recruitment Team ).
If you are not satisfied with the response, you receive you should then contact, Chief People Officer, via the Recruitment Team ).
If you are still not satisfied with the response you receive from the Planning Inspectorate, you can contact the Office of the Civil Service Commission.