Location: London - 2 days on site Salary: Up to 67000 + 30 Days Holiday + Performance Bonus Sector: Independent National Standards & Research
The Opportunity
They are seeking a Lead Data Scientist to join a high-impact Directorate of Data Science and AI at the heart of Great Britain's national infrastructure. This is not a "typical" tech role; you will lead the development of digital products and decision-support tools that directly improve the safety, efficiency, and sustainability of a major national network.
As a senior practitioner, you will bridge the gap between technical delivery and senior leadership. You will be the technical heartbeat of the team - ensuring high-quality modelling practices while mentoring junior colleagues and modernising our AI capabilities.
The Role
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Technical Leadership: Act as a senior hands-on practitioner, leading the delivery of analytical and ML workstreams.
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Modernisation: Take an active interest in emerging tools (including Agentic frameworks and Generative AI) to strengthen the team's capability.
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Mentorship: Provide technical guidance, code reviews, and coaching to junior scientists to build a culture of excellence.
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Operational Excellence: Uphold best practices in coding, documentation, and Reproducible Analytical Pipelines (RAP).
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Collaboration: Work closely with subject matter experts and architects to ensure outputs are robust and ready for real-world operational use.
Your Profile
They are looking for a candidate who values rigour as much as innovation. You likely have a background in the Public Sector, Government (Grade 7 equivalent), or a highly regulated industry.
Essential Experience:
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End-to-End ML: Proven experience delivering applied data science projects from feature engineering to deployment.
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Python Mastery: Expert-level Python skills with a focus on code structure, testing, and version control.
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Governance: A deep commitment to reproducibility, model assurance, and secure data workflows.
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Agile Delivery: Experience working in iterative, sprint-based environments.
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Communication: The ability to tell a story with data to both technical and non-technical stakeholders.
Desirable:
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Experience deploying models within Azure cloud environments.
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Familiarity with Safety-Critical environments (e.g., Transport, Energy, Healthcare).
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Experience with agentic frameworks or modern AI orchestration.
Why Apply?
This organisation is renowned for its commitment to staff wellbeing and professional development.
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Work-Life Balance: 30 days annual leave (plus bank holidays), flexible core hours, and hybrid working.
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Health & Future: Private medical and dental cover, performance-related bonus, and a highly competitive pension scheme.
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Impact: Your work will have a tangible effect on the safety and sustainability of national infrastructure used by millions.
