The Welsh Government delivers digital services to people and business across Wales. Led by our Chief Digital Officer, the Welsh Government is increasingly delivering more services online and has a vision (outlined in the Digital Strategy for Wales) of improving the lives of everyone through collaboration, innovation and better public services.
To achieve this vision, the Welsh Government needs specialist digital, data and technology skills across all departments in the organisation to improve the services and policies we develop for Welsh citizens.
For more information about the benefits of making a difference with us, please see the Employee Benefits Pack.
Team/Division Overview
The Geography & Technology section division provides geospatial applications, services and support to the Welsh public sector. As part of the team, you will work across different policy areas and learn how digital solutions and geospatial data can be used as part of the decision making process to make a significant and direct contribution for the people of Wales
The Data Map Wales team is the central point of contact for Welsh Government departments, Welsh public sector staff and members of the public who have queries, requests or issues regarding the Geospatial services provided by Data Map Wales.
Job Role
This post is mapped to the Developer role/level in the DDaT Profession Capability Framework. Follow the link to understand the role and the required skills.
As a Geospatial Application Developer, you will be contributing to the development, maintenance, and enhancement of geospatial applications and services within the Data Map Wales platform. You will work on the full software development lifecycle, from requirements gathering and design to implementation, testing, and deployment.
This includes developing solutions that meet user needs, adhere to best practices, and integrate effectively with existing systems. You will also contribute to the technical direction of projects, mentor junior developers, and ensure the scalability, security, and reliability of our geospatial systems. You will be expected to operate the services you build and identify issues in production.
We are looking for people who are:
- Curious and analytical, with a genuine interest in using geospatial technology to solve real-world problems and improve public services
- Team oriented, willing to support others when needed and share ideas and approaches.
- Organised and have good planning skills to ensure the timely delivery of high-quality outputs.
Experienced in communicating with a wide range of people using different communication methods.
Responsibilities
At this role level, you will:
- develop software to meet user needs
- follow best practice guidelines and help to improve those guidelines
- write clean, secure and well-tested code
- coach and mentor more junior colleagues
- operate the services you build and identify issues in production
Your main day to day responsibilities will include:
- Take part in team activities such as platform testing, content creation, and stakeholder engagement events, providing guidance and direction to junior team members.
- Contribute to User Experience (UX) projects, driving insights and recommendations to align with user needs and business objectives.
- Work with senior developers on service design projects, contributing to the full development lifecycle for new functionality and features, and ensuring adherence to best practices and quality standards.
- Investigate and respond to queries and issues raised by stakeholders and members of the public, prioritizing key concerns, working with the development team to find resolutions, and communicating effectively with all parties involved.
- Mentor and coach junior developers, providing technical guidance and support to ensure their professional growth and development.
- Contribute to the development of the team's technical standards and best practices, promoting code quality, maintainability, and security.
- Identify opportunities for process improvement and innovation, and lead the implementation of changes to enhance the efficiency and effectiveness of the development process.
Person specification
As a member of the Digital, Data and Technology profession in Welsh Government you will have access to a range of learning and development opportunities.
You will have the opportunity to work on various projects and engage with colleagues at all levels from within the profession and business areas across the organisation.
Welsh Government is supportive of your learning and development and has a range of training and opportunities available including a suite of online training, coaching and mentoring and short-term experience placements which you will be able to take advantage of depending on your learning and development needs and discussions with your line manager.
You will develop your skills as a geospatial application developer, giving you the experience and training needed to progress in this role.
Behaviours
We'll assess you against these behaviours during the selection process:
Technical skills
We'll assess you against these technical skills during the selection process:
- Programming and build (software engineering) – Design, code, test and document programs of medium-to-high complexity, to the agreed specifications using the right standards and tools.
- Systems design - Design systems characterised by managed levels of risk, impact and business or technical complexity. Effectively document all work to required standards.
Benefits
Alongside your salary of £37,111, Welsh Government contributes £10,751 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides.
- Learning and development tailored to your role
- An environment with flexible working options
- A culture encouraging inclusion and diversity
- A Civil Service pension with an employer contribution of 28.97%.
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
This vacancy is using Success Profiles (opens in a new window), and will assess your Behaviours, Experience and Technical skills.
A reserve list may be held for this opportunity. Any candidate who is successful in being offered a reserve status, will remain on the reserve list for 12 months.
DDaT Technical Assessment
Candidates who successfully demonstrate that they meet the minimum Criteria will be invited to interview.
A technical scenario on geospatial application development will be required at interview stage. Testing Techncial criteria - Systems design - Design systems characterised by managed levels of risk, impact and business or technical complexity. Effectively document all work to required standards. More information will be provided in the invitations to that stage.
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 (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.
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.
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
Recruitment team
