Lead Infrastructure Engineer - Networks (£57,515 to £82,430)

Are you an experienced network infrastructure professional with a passion for delivering secure, resilient and high-performing services?

Do you enjoy leading technical teams, solving complex infrastructure challenges and driving continual improvement across enterprise-scale environments?

Have you successfully delivered and supported networking and security technologies such as Cisco networking, firewalls, load balancing and cloud connectivity solutions?

If so, we’d love to hear from you!

As a Lead Infrastructure Engineer (Networks), you will provide technical leadership for the delivery, support and continuous improvement of critical network infrastructure services. Working with architects, engineers, suppliers and stakeholders, you will ensure services remain secure, stable and fit for the future, while leading the adoption of new technologies and ways of working. This is an exciting opportunity to play a key role in shaping and supporting the organisation's network infrastructure strategy and services.

Joining our department comes with many benefits, including:

• Employer pension contribution of 28.97% of your salary. Read more about Civil Service Pensions here
• 25 days annual leave, increasing by 1 day each year of service (up to a maximum of 30 days annual leave), plus 8 bank holidays and a privilege day for the King’s birthday
• Flexible working options where we encourage a great work-life balance.

Read more in the Benefits section below!

Find out more about what it's like working at DVLA - Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency - Department for Transport Careers.

The Lead Infrastructure Engineer (Networks) is responsible for leading the delivery, support, maintenance and continuous improvement of enterprise network and security infrastructure services. The role provides expert technical leadership across network and connectivity services, ensuring the delivery of safe, stable, secure and resilient services that support business operations and customer-facing services.

The postholder will work closely with Technical Architects, Security Architects, Delivery Teams and suppliers to translate architecture into operational services and ensure solutions are effectively implemented, supported and continually improved throughout their lifecycle.

The role combines deep technical expertise in networking and network security technologies with leadership responsibilities, including the management of technical teams, suppliers, projects and service improvement initiatives.

Your responsibilities will include, but aren’t limited to:

• Oversee programmes and projects.
• Work with technical architects to translate the architectural designs into operations and lead the production of Low Level Designs.
• Lead and direct infrastructure specialist teams in building, managing, supporting and maintaining solutions according to departmental policy.

Great line management is important to us as an organisation, and we will equip and support line managers to develop the skills they need. We aim to empower line managers to create teams where people can flourish and deliver excellent outcomes for the public.

For further information on the role, please read the attached role profile. Please note that the role profile is for information purposes only - whilst all elements are relevant to the role, they may not all be assessed during the recruitment process. This job advert will detail exactly what will be assessed during the recruitment process.

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)

This vacancy is using Success Profiles (opens in a new window), and will assess your Behaviours, Experience and Technical skills.

How to apply:

Our selection process ensures a comprehensive assessment of each applicant's skills, and potential fit within our organisation.

The selection process for this role will be:

Stage 1: Sift of CV and personal statement

Stage 2: Interview & Technical assessment

You must be successful at each stage to progress to the next stage.

Stage 1: Sift

At sift, you will be assessed against the following Success Profile elements:

• Experience – you will be asked to provide a CV (unlimited wordcount) and personal statement (1000-word count). Please provide evidence of your Experience of the following:
• Demonstrable experience leading the delivery and support of enterprise-scale network and security infrastructure services, ensuring services remain secure, resilient and available.
• Strong technical expertise in networking technologies, including Cisco enterprise routing and switching, firewalls (Cisco, Palo Alto or equivalent), load balancing solutions and cloud connectivity.
• Experience driving infrastructure change and continuous improvement, including the use of automation, troubleshooting complex technical issues and working effectively with suppliers and stakeholders.

The sift will take place week commencing 7th September 2026.

Stage 2: Interview & Technical assessment

At interview stage, you will be assessed against the following Success Profile elements:

• Behaviours – Leadership, Developing Self & Others
• Technical – Systems Design (Skill Level Practitioner), Troubleshooting & Problem Resolution (Skill Level Expert), Technical Understanding (Skill Level Expert), Information Security (Skill Level Practitioner)

Candidates will also be required to complete a Technical Assessment. Guidance will be provided if you are invited to interview.

The interviews will take place week commencing 21st September 2026.

This interview will be conducted in person at our Swansea office (DVLA, Longview Road, Morriston Swansea SA6 7 JL). Further details will be provided to you should you be selected for interview.

Appointments for this position will be made in order of merit. If you are successful in the selection process but there are no further available posts for the advertised role, you may be contacted to discuss an offer for a lower graded role (with similar experience and responsibility requirements). If you are unsuccessful in the selection process, your application may be considered for a lower graded position if your demonstrated skills and experience meet the requirements of the alternative position. Candidates will be considered in order of merit.

You can find out more about our hiring process, how to apply, and application and interview guidance on our careers site (opens in a new window).

Please note that we will try to meet the dates set out in the advert. There may be occasions when these dates will change.

Further information on the selection process

We will also hold a 12-month reserve list for this role, which may lead to potential opportunities beyond the role you applied for.

Reasonable Adjustments

As a Disability Confident Leader employer, we are committed to ensuring that the recruitment process is fair, accessible and allows all candidates to perform at their best. If a person with a visible or non-visible disability is substantially disadvantaged, we have a duty to make reasonable changes to our processes.

Complete the “Assistance required” section in the “Additional requirements” page of your application form to tell us what changes or help you might need during the recruitment process. For instance, you may need wheelchair access at an interview, or if you’re deaf, a Language Service Professional.

If you need a reasonable adjustment so that you can complete your application, you should contact Government Recruitment Service via dftrecruitment.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk as soon as possible before the closing date to discuss your needs.

Document Accessibility

This job advert contains links to the DfT Careers website. Our website provides useful guidance and information that can support you during the application process. If you are experiencing accessibility problems with any attachments on this advert or the information on our website, please contact the email address in the 'Contact point for applicants' section.

Further Information

For more information about how we hire, and for useful tips on submitting your application for this role, visit the How We Hire page of our DfT Careers website. You can find detailed information about the recruitment process and what to expect when applying for a role.

Current Civil Servants (all contract types) will need to ensure that they are still employed as a civil servant at the point of starting in the relevant new post. If their contract ends (e.g. end of FTA contract or resignation) at any point during the recruitment/onboarding process for the advertised role, they will no longer be eligible and may be withdrawn.

For further information on National Security Vetting please visit the Demystifying Vetting website.

Pre-employment Checking

If your application is successful but you have been dismissed from the Civil Service, your application could be removed at the pre-employment checking stage depending on the nature of the dismissal.

Applicants who are successful at interview will be, as part of pre-employment screening, subject to a check on the Internal Fraud Database (IFD). This check will provide information about employees who have been dismissed for fraud or dishonesty offences. This check also applies to employees who resign or otherwise leave before being dismissed for fraud or dishonesty had their employment continued. Any applicant’s details held on the IFD will be refused employment. A candidate is not eligible to apply for a role within the Civil Service if the application is made within a 5-year period following a dismissal for carrying out internal fraud against government.

All current employees of accredited non-departmental public bodies (NDPBs) will be required to undergo a Social Media Check. A Social Media Check is a review of your publicly available online activity, typically across platforms like LinkedIn, Facebook, X (formerly Twitter), Instagram, and others. The purpose is to identify any public posts or content that could raise concerns for employers, such as:

Hate speech or discriminatory behaviour

Threats or acts of violence

Illegal activity or substance misuse

Sexually explicit material

Extremist views or affiliations

Importantly, this check does not involve hacking into your accounts or accessing private messages. It only considers content you have chosen to make public. Employers use this kind of screening to help ensure their workplace remains safe, inclusive, and aligned with company values. It’s not about judging your personality or lifestyle—it’s about checking for potential red flags that might affect the role or company culture. If you have questions or concerns about the social media check, we would be happy to explain in more detail what’s being looked at and how your data is handled securely and fairly.

Feedback

Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.