Senior Network Engineer

Salary: £61,000 - 101,000 per year

Requirements:

• Formal technical qualification equivalent to CCNP level or above, or substantial experience in a senior network engineering role, with advanced knowledge of enterprise routing and switching, network security, wireless technologies, and large-scale network infrastructure management.
• Proven experience producing and maintaining network architecture artefacts, including High Level Designs (HLDs), Low Level Designs (LLDs), topology diagrams, reference architectures, and As-Built documentation across enterprise LAN, WAN, WLAN, and security environments.
• Demonstrable ability to lead or contribute to network architecture initiatives, provide technical assurance and design reviews, and ensure solutions align with organisational standards, security-by-design principles, and best practice methodologies.
• Significant experience acting as a senior technical authority during major incidents, leading network diagnosis and resolution activities, collaborating within multidisciplinary Major Incident Response Teams, and managing complex, high-pressure situations.
• Experience producing Root Cause Analysis (RCA) reports and Post-Incident Reviews (PIRs), and maintaining incident runbooks, playbooks, and escalation procedures while driving continuous service improvement and reducing recurrence of critical incidents.
• Ability to monitor network infrastructure to optimise performance, support capacity planning, identify risks, and proactively address technical issues to maintain service availability and resilience for large user populations.
• Excellent written, verbal, reporting, and presentation skills, with the ability to communicate complex technical concepts to technical and non-technical audiences, work effectively across multidisciplinary teams, deliver outstanding customer service, and manage competing priorities under changing timescales.
• Desirable: Experience with network function virtualisation (NFV), software-defined networking (SDN), overlay/underlay design, and virtual network appliance deployment.
• Desirable: Experience with automation tools such as Terraform, Ansible, or Python-based frameworks for infrastructure provisioning and compliance enforcement.
• Desirable: Hands-on experience with SIEM platforms such as Splunk or Microsoft Sentinel for network security monitoring, alert triage, and threat hunting.
• Desirable: Experience with Zero Trust technologies such as Zscaler ZIA/ZPA, Illumio, or equivalent ZTNA platforms.
• Desirable: Familiarity with network observability tools such as ThousandEyes, NetBrain, or Datadog Network Performance Monitoring.
• Desirable: Experience with ITSM platforms such as ServiceNow for major incident management, problem records, and change advisory workflows.
• Desirable: Familiarity with HPC or scientific network environments, high-throughput storage networking, or research network interconnect requirements.
• Desirable: Ability to communicate about complex matters and difficult situations, using persuasion and influence across organisational boundaries.
• Successful candidates must pass a basic Disclosure and Barring Service check and Security Check vetting. Applicants would normally need to have been resident in the UK for the previous five years for SC clearance.
• Applicants must have current UK professional registration.

Responsibilities:

• Own and maintain current knowledge of our network architecture, acting as a technical authority on network design decisions.
• Maintain the availability and performance of specialist network systems, working with specialist engineers and ICT colleagues.
• Lead network architecture as our senior technical lead, maintaining HLDs, LLDs, topology diagrams, and As-Built documentation.
• Lead the design, implementation, and lifecycle management of resilient, scalable, secure LAN, WAN, WLAN, and cloud-connected infrastructure, aligned with NCSC Secure by Design principles.
• Provide technical assurance for estate modernisation, science campus, data centre, and hybrid cloud programmes, collaborating with infrastructure, security, application, and cloud teams.
• Manage routing, switching, wireless, WAN, load balancing, IPAM, DNS, DHCP, and Extreme Networks platforms and services.
• Provide technical leadership for network security and operational resilience across our estate.
• Administer Palo Alto NGFW, Panorama, VPN, micro-segmentation, DMZ, and Zero Trust architectures, ensuring compliance with security standards and emerging threats.
• Lead network diagnosis, resolution, communication, Root Cause Analysis, and Post-Incident Reviews during major incident response activities.
• Develop incident runbooks, continuity plans, and mitigation strategies to reduce risk and improve service resilience across cloud and on-premises environments.
• Lead monitoring, observability, performance, and capacity management for network services, integrating operational and security monitoring with ITSM and SIEM platforms.
• Drive network automation and Infrastructure as Code using tools such as Ansible and Python.
• Manage vendor relationships, technology lifecycles, procurement planning, and proof-of-concept evaluations.
• Produce technical documentation; support ITIL Incident, Problem, Change, and Request Management processes; contribute to CAB activities; mentor engineers; advise stakeholders; maintain compliance with ICT standards; and deliver customer support, including on-call and out-of-hours services.
• Provide advice, guidance, and training to improve services for end users.
• Support our Network Team in ensuring hardware, software, and associated technologies are designed, procured, and delivered efficiently and cost-effectively.

Technologies:

• Ansible
• Cloud
• Datadog
• Hardware
• ICT
• Incident Management
• Support
• ITIL
• ITSM
• LAN
• Load Balancing
• Network
• Python
• Security
• ServiceNow
• Splunk
• Terraform
• VPN
• WLAN
• Architect
• Fabric
• LESS
• MS Teams

More:

We are the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA), an inclusive employer that promotes equality of opportunity and welcomes applications from everyone. Our inclusive culture values difference as a source of innovative solutions for our workforce and communities. This senior specialist engineer role is responsible for maintaining and evolving our network infrastructure and supporting our operational and scientific mission. The position is permanent, with full-time, part-time, job-share, and flexible working options. Salary is £56,185–£70,566 per year, pro rata, plus a market pay supplement of £6,650 per year, currently stated through 1 February 2027. Hybrid working is available from our core headquarters in Birmingham, Leeds, Liverpool, or London (Canary Wharf), with at least 60% of contractual hours spent on-site. Our modern, refurbished offices have city-centre transport links and are co-located with other government departments. The selection process includes an application and supporting statement, followed by a remote interview assessing behaviours, technical skills, and experience. Applications from people requiring Skilled Worker sponsorship are welcome and will be considered alongside other applications.

last updated 39 week of 2026