Address
Form of work
SalarySoftware Developer
Grade SEO (Inner) - £42,716 to £48,068
UKHSA Colindale
FTC Contract until 31st May 2025
We are looking for a Software Developer with experience of Ruby on Rails to work in the Gastrointestinal Bacteria Reference Unit (GBRU), which is part of the Public Health Microbiology Division of the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA).
The UKHSA is responsible for protecting every member of every community from the impact of infectious diseases, chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear incidents and other health threats. We provide intellectual, scientific and operational leadership at national and local level, as well as on the global stage, to make the nation’s health secure. UKHSA is an executive agency, sponsored by the Department of Health and Social Care.
GBRU is one of UKHSA’s reference microbiology laboratories, dealing with bacterial pathogens such as Salmonella, E. coli, Listeria and Campylobacter which cause gastrointestinal disease, and which pose a significant threat to public health.
Working to the Lead Bioinformatician in the Gastrointestinal Bacteria Reference Unit (GBRU), you will lead on the maintenance and development of Gastro Data Warehouse 2 (GDW2), ensuring that the system runs efficiently and smoothly. You will work within the Gastrointestinal Diseases Informatic Service (GIDIS) team in GBRU which is a small, multi-disciplinary team providing bioinformatics and data management support to the GBRU microbiology reference laboratory, and the Gastrointestinal Infections & Food Safety (One Health) (GIFSOH) unit.
This role offers the opportunity to further your skills as a Software Developer in the Ruby programming language and Ruby on Rails, and, potentially, Python. You will gain experience of maintaining and developing a key tool for the work of the unit, of the national epidemiology team, and for local and regional teams that investigate outbreaks of foodborne illness. GDW2 is web-based application built using Ruby on Rails and using a PostgreSQL database. You will be responsible for maintaining and developing the system under the guidance of the Lead Bioinformatician and Data Manager, in collaboration with colleagues in the team and senior managers in the unit. You will be expected to work proactively to identify and mitigate bugs and problems, as well as dealing quickly and effectively with issues that arise during the day-to-day running of the system. You will be expected to document your work and to devise testing processes for changes you make to the system.
UKHSA Colindale - Hybrid - 60% Office
*Please be aware that this role can only be worked from within the UK and not overseas. Relocation expenses are not available.*
Working Pattern - Full Time - 37.5 Hours per Week
Responsibilities section:
The job holder will be required to carry out the following responsibilities, activities and duties:
- Develop and maintain the Gastro Data Warehouse 2 (GDW2) website using Ruby on Rails, HTML, CSS, JavaScript, JSON and JQuery.
- Plan and develop GDW2 tools and components using Ruby and Python languages.
- Write clean, maintainable, and efficient code, adhering to best practices and coding standards. Conduct regular code reviews to ensure quality and consistency.
- Work closely with product managers, team members and IT colleagues to understand project requirements and to ensure the smooth running of the GDW2 system.
- Identify and resolve issues, bugs, and performance bottlenecks. Conduct thorough debugging and troubleshooting to ensure seamless application functionality.
- Use version control systems (e.g. Git) effectively to manage codebase and collaborate with team members.
- Develop and execute comprehensive test plans to ensure the reliability and stability of applications. Implement automated testing processes where applicable.
- Create and maintain technical documentation for code and processes to facilitate collaboration and knowledge sharing.
The duties/responsibilities listed above describe the post as it is at present and is not intended to be exhaustive. The Job holder is expected to accept reasonable alterations and additional tasks of a similar level that may be necessary.
Press apply to learn more about this great opportunity!
