Job vacancy: Lead Cloud Architect, Public Health Wales NHS Trust, Cardiff

Job summary

Main area: Cloud Architect
Grade: Band 8b
Contract: Permanent
Hours: Full time - 37.5 hours per week
Job ref: 028-AC209-0825

Employer: Public Health Wales NHS Trust
Employer type: NHS
Site: 2 Capital Quarter
Town: Cardiff
Salary: £65,424 - £76,021 per annum
Salary period: Yearly
Closing: 02/09/2025 23:59
Interview date: 17/09/2025

Lead Cloud Architect

Band 8b

Welcome to Public Health Wales, the national public health organisation for Wales

Our vision is Working to achieve a healthier future for Wales

To find out more visit Public Health Wales and watch this video about our Strategic Plan

Working together, with trust and respect, to make a difference

Applicants are invited to apply in Welsh, any application submitted in Welsh will not be treated less favourably than an application made in English. To support our all Wales service, we particularly welcome applications from Welsh speakers.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

The role involves designing and implementing secure, scalable, and cost-effective cloud architectures that align with business needs. This includes selecting appropriate platforms and tools, developing migration strategies for legacy systems, and ensuring solutions support high availability and disaster recovery. The role also requires translating complex business requirements into technical designs, guiding others in creating high-impact solutions, and continuously improving infrastructure through performance optimization, automation, and compliance audits.

Strong communication and leadership skills are essential, as the role involves engaging with both technical and non-technical stakeholders, presenting strategies to executives, and facilitating collaboration across departments. The Lead Cloud Architect oversees integration with enterprise systems, promotes modern cloud practices like DevOps and Infrastructure as Code, and stays informed on emerging technologies. Financial oversight includes managing budgets, controlling costs, and handling vendor relationships. Importantly, the role includes mentoring staff, enforcing architectural standards, and ensuring cloud initiatives support broader organisational goals and compliance requirements.

Qualifications and Knowledge
Essential
• In-depth knowledge of cloud platforms (e.g., Microsoft Azure, AWS, or Google Cloud) and cloud-native architecture.
• Strong understanding of cloud security, identity and access management, and compliance.
• Master’s in computer science, Information Technology, or a related discipline, or equivalent professional experience.
• Relevant cloud certifications (e.g., Azure Solutions Architect Expert, AWS Certified Solutions Architect).
• Evidence of continuous professional development.

Desirable
• Knowledge of NHS Wales digital transformation programmes.
• Familiarity with Welsh Government digital and data strategies.
• Certifications in enterprise architecture (e.g., TOGAF) or similar.
• Comprehensive knowledge and understanding of the NHS, or other healthcare systems and services, including the political, strategic, and operational environments in which they operate

You will be able to find a full Job description and Person Specification attached within the supporting documents or please click "Apply now" to view on Trac.

The ability to speak Welsh is desirable for this post; Welsh and/or English speakers are equally welcome to apply.

Person specification

Qualifications & Knowledge

Essential criteria

• In-depth knowledge of cloud platforms (e.g., Microsoft Azure, AWS, or Google Cloud) and cloud-native architecture.
• Strong understanding of cloud security, identity and access management, and compliance.
• Master’s in computer science, Information Technology, or a related discipline, or equivalent professional experience.
• Relevant cloud certifications (e.g., Azure Solutions Architect Expert, AWS Certified Solutions Architect).
• Evidence of continuous professional development.

Desirable criteria

• Knowledge of NHS Wales digital transformation programmes.
• Familiarity with Welsh Government digital and data strategies.
• Certifications in enterprise architecture (e.g., TOGAF) or similar.
• Comprehensive knowledge and understanding of the NHS, or other healthcare systems and services, including the political, strategic, and operational environments in which they operate

Experience

Essential criteria

• Proven experience designing and implementing cloud solutions in a complex, regulated environment such as healthcare or the public sector.
• Demonstrated experience managing and developing a team of cloud engineers or technical staff.
• Experience with cloud migration, hybrid cloud environments, and Infrastructure as Code (IaC).
• Experience managing cloud budgets and optimising cost-efficiency.
• Expert in performing a proof of concept or prototyping exercise to demonstrate or evaluate the feasibility and potential benefits of applying a particular technological business change.
• Proficient in identifying, agreeing and monitoring objectives and deliverables with individuals, identifying under-performance issues against agreed quality standards and performance criteria.

Desirable criteria

• Experience working within NHS Wales or other UK health systems.
• Familiarity with Agile delivery, DevOps practices, CI/CD pipelines, and containerisation (e.g. Docker, Kubernetes).
• Experience with monitoring, logging, and alerting tools in cloud environments.

Skills & Attributes

Essential criteria

• Strong leadership and interpersonal skills, with the ability to inspire, mentor, and guide a technical team.
• Excellent communication skills, capable of engaging with both technical and non-technical stakeholders across NHS Wales.
• Highly organised, self-motivated, and able to manage multiple priorities in a dynamic environment.
• Committed to continuous improvement, innovation, and professional development
. • Collaborative and inclusive, with a strong focus on delivering value to patients and healthcare professionals.

Desirable criteria

• Passion for digital transformation in public health and care.
• Resilient and adaptable in a fast-evolving digital landscape.
• Advocates for ethical technology use, accessibility, and digital inclusion in line with Public Health Wales values.
• Welsh Language Skills

Other

Essential criteria

• Ability to travel between sites in a timely manner to meet the needs of the service
• Requirement to demonstrate and embed the Values and Behaviours of the organisation

Public Health Wales, reserves the right to close this vacancy early. We therefore encourage early applications.

Priority is given to staff awaiting redeployment. We therefore reserve the right to withdraw this advert at any stage.

If you have a disability and have any particular requirements to enable you to participate in the application process, please contact [email protected]

IMPORTANT NOTE FOR APPLICANTS: Applications for our roles are carefully reviewed and shortlisted based on specific criteria, which varies from job to job.

Using a generic application or automated AI application services, such as Lazy Apply or AI Apply, does not usually provide enough personal evidence of your skills and experience relevant to the role. This can make it difficult for us to assess your suitability and will reduce your chances of being shortlisted.

To ensure your application is given full consideration, we recommend submitting a tailored application that directly addresses the criteria listed in the Person Specification section of the advert, providing clear evidence and examples to demonstrate how you meet each requirement.

Visa Sponsorship Eligibility

If you require sponsorship under the Skilled Worker or Health and Care Visa routes, please ensure you self‑assess your eligibility for sponsorship for this role before applying.
Check the Skilled Worker visa guidance or Health and Care visa guidance for details on job eligibility, salary, English language, and sponsorship requirements.

If you are successful and short listed for interview you will be contacted by email using the address with which you registered. Please ensure you check your email account regularly.

We are committed to fair, transparent recruitment and believe in equality of opportunity in our workplace and will not tolerate discrimination on grounds of age, disability, gender identity, religion or belief, race or nationality, marriage or civil partnership status, sex, sexual orientation, working pattern, caring responsibilities, trade union activity or political beliefs – or on any other grounds. We welcome applications from individuals seeking flexible working arrangements.

The salary scale shown is for a full-time member of staff, with the amount being adjusted pro rata for those working less than 37.5 hours per week.

The salary scale above has been agreed as part of the NHS Agenda for Change pay award for 2025/2026 and will be implemented in August 2025 with arrears backdated to 1st April 2025 where applicable.

In general, anyone joining our Trust who has not previously worked in the NHS will, by default, start on the first point of the advertised pay band. Pay progression will then be determined by annual Performance and Development Reviews in accordance with the NHS Wales Pay Progression Policy. An application for Incremental Credit may be considered, but can only be awarded based on evidenced, reckonable service and/or equivalent, relevant experience.