Senior Data Engineer

Senior Data Engineer (Contract) Location: UK (Remote / Hybrid) Contract Type: Contract (Outside IR35) Role Overview We are seeking a Senior Data Engineer (Contract) to support the delivery of secure, business-critical data platforms within high-assurance, regulated environments. The role focuses on designing and implementing resilient data pipelines and integration services that enable controlled data sharing across complex, multi-domain systems, while maintaining strong standards of security, governance, and compliance. The successful contractor will operate at a senior technical level, contributing to platform design, assuring engineering quality, and supporting delivery in environments where data integrity, availability, and access control are essential. Key Responsibilities • Design, build, and maintain secure, scalable data pipelines and integration services • Engineer data solutions that support controlled data access across complex domains • Develop production-grade code aligned with secure-by-design principles • Model complex datasets to support interoperability and governed access • Integrate data from diverse sources, including legacy and operational systems • Implement fine-grained access controls, data classification, and governance mechanisms • Support deployment and operation of data services across cloud, on-premise, and hybrid environments • Collaborate with architects, security specialists, and delivery teams • Contribute to design reviews and technical decision-making • Ensure performance, resilience, and observability of data platforms • Produce and maintain clear technical documentation Required Skills & Experience • Extensive experience operating as a Senior Data Engineer on complex, enterprise-scale platforms • Strong programming capability in Python • Commercial experience with Java and/or Scala • Advanced SQL and strong data modelling skills • Proven experience designing and operating ETL / ELT pipelines at scale • Solid understanding of distributed systems and data platform architecture • Experience with at least one major cloud platform (AWS, Azure, or GCP) • Experience with containerisation and orchestration (Docker, Kubernetes) • Familiarity with CI/CD pipelines and modern DevOps practices Experience in Regulated Environments • Experience delivering data solutions in regulated or high-assurance settings • Understanding of security-focused architectures such as least-privilege access • Experience implementing data governance, classification, and policy-driven access controls • Comfortable operating in environments with formal assurance, audit, and compliance requirements • Able to handle sensitive information in line with contractual and organisational standards Desirable Experience • Knowledge of semantic data, knowledge graphs, or graph databases • Experience with RDF, SPARQL, or ontology-based data models • Familiarity with controlled or cross-domain data sharing patterns • Experience with Infrastructure-as-Code (e.g. Terraform, CloudFormation) • Exposure to open-source data platforms or frameworks Contractor Profile • Able to deliver independently with minimal supervision • Comfortable working within structured delivery frameworks • Strong analytical and problem-solving skills • Clear communicator with both technical and non-technical stakeholders • Pragmatic, delivery-focused, and quality-driven Additional Information Due to the nature of the work, candidates must be eligible to pass background and suitability checks as part of the engagement.