Lead Software Developer

Are you a curious, adaptable and experienced Scrum Team Lead and Java developer, committed to continuous learning?

If you are looking for a place where you can focus on your own development as well as support others to succeed and perform at their best, then this is the role for you.

We're looking for talented Lead Software Developers to join Companies House and play a key role in transforming corporate governance through the Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act.

Our modern digital services are built primarily using Java with Spring Boot and TypeScript with Node.js and Express, alongside the GOV.UK Design System. We're also modernising a number of legacy applications as part of an ambitious transformation programme.

We are currently looking for expert developers in Java using the Spring Boot framework. We like to hire inquisitive developers who value continuous learning, and we will support you in learning all the development technologies we use at Companies House. As a Lead Developer, over time you will be expected to be familiar with all the technologies in use at Companies House, including multiple languages and frameworks (Typescript, Node, Express, Go and others).

Watch this video to find out more about working in Digital at Companies House

Companies House offers a flexible and welcoming culture that promotes a healthy work life balance as well as a proactive approach to wellbeing that allows us to be our best at work. We recognise that people are the key to our success so offer a fantastic benefits package including flexible working with no core hours, 30 days annual leave, 8 bank holidays and 1 privilege day as well as enrolment into the Civil Service Pension scheme with a contribution rate averaging 28%.

Find out more about what a great place Companies House is to work

Please note:

• Companies House cannot offer Visa sponsorship to candidates through this campaign.
• Security Clearance is an essential requirement for this campaign. You'll need to have been in the UK for at least 3 out of the last 5 years to be eligible to apply for SC.

As a Lead Developer, you'll manage and develop a Scrum team of around eight developers of varying experience levels. Working in a multidisciplinary agile team, you'll provide technical leadership, coaching and mentoring, helping your team deliver high-quality services that sit at the heart of our organisation.

As a Lead Developer, you will:

• Provide technical leadership to your team
• Coach and support your team to upskill their technical capabilities and ensure they design and deliver efficient and maintainable solutions
• Advocate and lead the adoption of developer AI tooling within your team
• Take technical ownership of release increments for services your team is responsible for
• Communicate between the product owners and developers to ensure key deliverables are achieved and understood by both parties
• Work with the wider developer community to define and document technical standards
• Work to ensure your services are up to date by resolving security vulnerabilities according to our security policy
• Help and encourage your team to maximise their automated test coverage
• Work closely with the Architects for design and the Platform team who manage our development pipeline using Concourse CI SonarQube, AWS, Terraform and Artifactory. We use Docker containers and AWS ECS
• Take the lead in sharing your knowledge and experience within our software development and lead software developer communities

We actively invest in learning, innovation and professional development. Developers are given dedicated time to explore new ideas, develop their skills and keep pace with industry trends. You'll have access to online learning, instructor-led training, conferences (subject to budget), and a thriving developer community of practice.

You will be joining a passionate team of Developers with varying levels of technical abilities. There are many other experienced Lead Developers and Principal Developers within Companies House, so you will be surrounded by a friendly community of experts who will fully support you.

You can read more about a career in Digital and Data within the Civil Service in the Government Digital and Data Candidate Information Pack.

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, Strengths, Experience and Technical skills.

What will the process look like?Key Dates (dates are indicative only and could be subject to change)

• Closing date: 2nd September 2026 at 23:55
• Sifting: from 3rd September 2026 onwards
• Interviews: from 16th September 2026 onwards via Microsoft Teams

Stage 1 – SiftAn initial sift of applications will be carried out to create a shortlist. This will be based on the evidence provided for the following Success Profile elements: Experience.

In your application form we’d like you to:

Write a CV: Tell us about your employment history, key responsibilities, projects worked on and achievements specifically relevant to the role responsibilities and experience required as detailed above. We're keen to know the depth of your skills and experience so please include any details to demonstrate these. We’d specifically like to know what projects you worked on, for how long, what was your role, what technologies you used and project outcomes.

Write a Personal Statement of 750 words: tell us, using work-based examples to demonstrate your level of skill, how you the following three role requirements:

• Excellent coding skills which must include demonstrable experience of Java and Spring Boot for Enterprise or microservice architectures
• Experience of leading a scrum team.
• Strong communication skills where you can translate technical jargon into simple, clear descriptions so understanding is achieved.

We'd encourage you to use the full word count, and to give us clear examples and evidence of the different elements of the essential minimum criteria.

We’re committed to being diverse and inclusive, so please make your application anonymous by removing all identifying personal information (such as your name and age) from your personal statement.

Once the advert has closed, we will sift applications - this involves reading through them all, please bear with us as this can take some time.

We may raise the score required if we receive a high number of applications.

At sift we may choose to take through the highest performing candidates to the next stage. If, after the final stage is completed and roles are unfilled, we will proceed to invite lower scoring candidates to interview.

Stage 2 - InterviewCompanies House uses a blended interview technique, allowing us to find out more about you. We use the Success Profile framework and at interview we will use Success Profiles assessing the Behaviours and Technical Skills listed in the advert, and Strengths.

Successful candidates from the sift stage will be invited to a virtual interview, which will be conducted using Microsoft Teams.

As part of the interview, you will be asked to complete a coding exercise. Details will be emailed to you 1 hour before your interview start time. You'll have 1 hour to work through the activity and then you'll join the Teams call at your interview start time. You'll be asked to screen share, discussing the exercise with the panel and answering some live questions to demonstrate your level of skill. This will be assessing Technical Skill: Programming and build.

The lead criteria to distinguish between tied candidates will be: Leadership.

A reserve list may be held for up to 12 months from which further appointments may be made for the same or similar roles.

If after the interview you are not found appointable at the advertised grade, you may be offered the lower grade role of Senior Software Developer, if you are considered to meet the skills, experience and behaviours for the lower level. The benchmark for appointing to the lower grade is set at the start of each campaign.

All offers will be made in merit order.

Our recruitment process is underpinned by the principle of recruitment based on fair and open competition with decisions made on the basis of merit, as outlined in the Civil Service Commissioners’ Recruitment Principles.

SponsorshipCompanies House cannot offer Visa sponsorship to candidates through this campaign. Companies House holds a Visa sponsorship licence but this can only be used for certain roles, and this campaign does not qualify. Should you apply for this role and require sponsorship, your application may be rejected, and any provisional offers of employment withdrawn.

Security ClearanceSuccessful candidates must pass a Baseline Personnel Security Standard (BPSS) check before they can be appointed.

BPSS is an entry level security check. It uses the Police National Computer (PNC) to make sure a candidate has no convictions. The check returns evidence of any current criminal record and un-spent convictions under the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974.

Successful candidates must meet the security requirements for Security Check (SC) before they can be appointed.

The requirement for SC clearance is to have been present in the UK for at least 3 of the last 5 years. Failure to meet the residency requirements will result in your security clearance application being rejected.

Further information on National Security Vetting

Pre-Employment Checking

In line with Government guidance, successfully appointed candidates will need to provide documents for our Right to Work checks.

From June 2026, applicants who are successful at interview will be, as part of pre-employment screening, subject to a check on the Internal Fraud Database (IFD). Your personal details (name, National Insurance number, and date of birth) will be checked against the Civil Service Resourcing Extract 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.

If your details appear on this database, you will not be offered employment unless you can demonstrate exceptional circumstances. Companies House, acting on behalf of the vacancy holder, will inform you if your application is refused for this reason.

Please note: You are 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.

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