Senior Software Developer
We are MHCLG Here at the Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local Government (MHCLG), we work on things that make a real difference to people's lives.
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£64,811 a year
Gross, as stated in the ad.
About £4,010 a month after tax.
Apply by Sunday 18 October
The date the employer’s listing closes.
Work on-site in London
No relocation package mentioned.
Have senior-level experience
Senior-level role.
28.97% employer pension
Paid in by the employer, per the ad. The legal minimum is 3%.
Cycle to work scheme
Commuter benefits named in the ad.
We will use the essential criteria below to assess you during the recruitment process. Make sure your CV and cover letter demonstrate how you meet these criteria.
As a Senior Service Designer, you'll have experience:
£64,811 - £70,677
National £64,811 (and up to £12,894 digital allowance)
London £70,677 (and up to £12,736 digital allowance)
New entrants to the Civil Service will start their role on the salary band of £64,811 for National Roles or £70,677 for London Roles.
You may be eligible for an additional non-pensionable allowance following the outcome of a Technical Capability and Skills assessment. Allowances vary by assessment outcome, with a maximum value of up to £12,894 (National) or £12,736 (London) available for candidates achieving the highest assessment rating.
A Civil Service Pension with an employer contribution of 28.97%
Alongside your salary of £64,811, Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government contributes £18,775 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides (opens in a new window).
At MHCLG we offer many benefits that range from tailored career pathways and flexible working to MyLifestyle Childcare Voucher and Cycle to Work Schemes. For more information, please click here.
Grade 7 Group 1 Digital and Data salary
This job is broadly open to the following groups:
Further information on nationality requirements (opens in a new window)
Here at the Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local Government (MHCLG), we work on things that make a real difference to people's lives. Whether it's through the homes we live in, the work of our local councils, or the communities we're all part of, our work is at the top of the political agenda. We have ambitious and far-reaching outcomes to achieve this year and, if you're thinking of joining us, there's never been a more exciting time.
The Senior Service Designer will be part of our Elections Digital division at MHCLG. It's an exciting time to improve and expand the electoral services in Public Beta to better meet users' needs. This includes:
- Register to vote
- Apply for a proxy vote
- Apply for a postal vote
- Vote in UK elections 'step by step'
- Apply for photo ID to vote (called a 'Voter Authority Certificate')
- ERO Portal (a website for Electoral Registration Offices in Local Authorities to process electoral applications)
We need to improve the understanding of the users and their needs, assess the users' experience of our services and test design ideas. We focus on users with disabilities or users who don't have access to the internet or lack the skills or confidence to use it. Your work will benefit millions of people who use our services each year to vote in the UK. We particularly welcome candidates from an ethnic minority background and other underrepresented groups to apply, as we work to continually improve our ability to represent the places and communities we support through our work.
Find out more about our Digital teams and what they are working on through our MHCLG Digital blog. Please note that MHCLG do not offer visa sponsorship and applicants will need a valid visa for the duration of your employment.
Senior Service Designers in our team are experienced practitioners who design, improve and transform complex end-to-end services. They help teams understand problems, identify opportunities, and design services that meet user needs and organisational outcomes. Senior Service Designers also help embed good service design practice across teams.
As a Senior Service Designer, you'll:
Permanent
Flexible working, Full-time, Job share, Part-time
Bristol, Darlington, London, Manchester, Wolverhampton
484138
Grade 7
Digital
1
MHCLG has implemented the Digital and Data capability framework for Group 1 roles. Applicants that are successful and have been offered a position will be required to complete a capability assessment after the interview.
MHCLG will honour completed capability assessments for this role from other Government Departments for existing civil servants on level transfer only. Please provide a copy of your capability assessment to the Hiring Manager when applying. If you have any queries on pay, please contact the Hiring Manager.
Each experience or technical skill is assessed between 1-3, representing working towards, at or above the job level requirements. You are awarded a proficiency level accordingly, and you will be given opportunity to annually re assess your capability and potentially increase your overall remuneration, through payment of allowances, depending on level of assessed capability.
Candidates moving from another government department have the option to retain their current basic pay if this is within our pay band for the relevant grade.
Apply before 11:55 pm on Sunday 18th October 2026
The application process will be split into 2 stages, testing the following Success Profiles:
Experience, Technical
Please ensure your CV does not contain any personally identifiable information.
Note: We do not consider direct CV applications. All applications must be submitted via the provided application link.
Important: Your CV and Cover Letter must be merged into a single document before uploading.
Stage 1: Sift (CV & Cover Letter)
Experience & Technical: Your covering letter should be no more than 1 page referencing how you meet the criteria set out in the job description.
Most of our campaigns utilise multiple assessors and so it is possible that each of your answers would be viewed by different assessors.
Stage 2: Interview
*Candidates will be asked to prepare a 5-10 minute presentation, further details will be provided on invitation to interview.
Sifting is envisaged to take place the week commencing 19th October 2026.
Interviews are envisaged to take place shortly after and are currently being held remotely via videocall. This could be subject to change.
Find out everything you need to know before applying here..
What you need to know before applying.
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.
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.
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.
National Office: BPSS
London Office: BPSS + CTC
Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.
Successful candidates must undergo a basic (or equivalent) criminal record check.
Successful candidates must meet the security requirements before they can be appointed. The level of security needed is counter-terrorist check (opens in a new window).
See our vetting charter (opens in a new window).
People working with government assets must complete baseline personnel security standard (opens in new window) checks.
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).
Once this job has closed, the job advert will no longer be available. You may want to save a copy for your records.
If you are unsure about any part of the process or require additional information about the post to enable you to progress your application, you should speak to the Resourcing team - Recruitment@communities.gov.uk. Candidates can appeal at any stage of the recruitment process if they believe there has been:
• a procedural irregularity
• an infringement of the Civil Service equal opportunities policy
• exceptional circumstances which were not notified to the interview panel which might have affected performance on the day.
It is important to note that these are appeals about the process not the decision. In the first instance, an appeal should be directed to the MHCLG Resourcing Hub at Recruitment@communities.gov.uk.
If the MHCLG Resourcing Hub is unable to satisfactorily resolve your complaint, you may contact put your complaint in writing to the Civil Service Commission, Room G8,1 Horse Guards Road, London, SW1A 2HQ or by email to: info@csc.gov.uk
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