Application Support & Development Engineer

Job summary

The Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman (PHSO) is a modern, vibrant organisation full of passionate, committed people. We make final decisions on complaints that have not been resolved by UK Government departments and the NHS in England. We work closely with people to understand where, how and why public services sometimes fall short and fail to put people first. And we find ways to put it right.

Based in the centre of Manchester and Westminster, we employ over 600 people who are passionate about making a difference through public service. Together, we work to make sure people's voices are heard and used to drive improvements in public services. We are proud of our inclusive culture, where different perspectives are valued, colleagues are supported to develop, and everyone can contribute to meaningful change.

Job description

As Application Support and Development Engineer, you will be looking after PHSO’s key applications and databases, mainly built on Microsoft technologies like Power Platform, SharePoint, Teams, and Dynamics 365. You’ll help improve and support these systems, develop new tools, and make sure everything runs smoothly.

You’ll split your time between improving services, building new solutions, supporting users, and helping deliver projects. Working closely with teams across the organisation, you will understand what is needed and create systems that support efficiency.

You’ll also be responsible for keeping systems secure, up to date, and well-documented. Sometimes, you may need to work outside normal hours to support upgrades or maintenance.

This role is ideal for someone who enjoys solving problems, working with others, and making technology work better for everyone.

Person specification

• extensive experience of Microsoft technologies, M365 suite, Power Platform, Power Apps, Azure, SharePoint online. Desirable - knowledge of SQL Server and Power BI
• good Knowledge of program languages and frameworks, such as React, JavaScript TSQL, XML, HTML, PowerShell and OData
• worked in an ITIL aligned ICT team, or knowledge of ITIL / Service Management
• the ability to manage own workload prioritising where necessary.

We recognise the value of lived experience. If you have experience of complaining about any public body, we strongly encourage you to apply.

Benefits

• Civil Service Pension scheme
• 32.5 days annual leave (plus bank holidays on top)
• hybrid working, 40 percent office based
• flexible working
• access to a free, confidential Employee Assistance Programme offering 24/7 advice and support from professionals and counsellors
• comprehensive learning and development programme
• employee discount scheme across hundreds of retailers
• one day paid volunteering leave per year
• bicycle loan scheme
• season ticket loan
• gym membership subsidy
• paid for professional memberships
• eye test reimbursement.

Things you need to know

Artificial intelligence

Artificial intelligence can be a useful tool to support your application, however, all examples and statements provided must be truthful, factually accurate and taken directly from your own experience. Where plagiarism has been identified (presenting the ideas and experiences of others, or generated by artificial intelligence, as your own) applications may be withdrawn and internal candidates may be subject to disciplinary action. Please see our candidate guidance (opens in a new window) for more information on appropriate and inappropriate use.

Selection process details

You will answer four scored questions at application stage. We use these to shortlist and longlist, so your answers matter.

• choose real examples (from professional settings)
• focus on what you did, not what “we” did as a group
• explain your thinking: what you looked at, what you decided, and why
• keep it clear and specific, avoid generic statements

Please do not use AI to write your answers. We need to assess your skills, and applications may be rejected if answers appear AI-generated.

If your examples are very short, mostly opinion-based, or don’t describe a specific situation and outcome, you are unlikely to score well.

Inclusion & Wellbeing

Equality, diversity, inclusion, and wellbeing are vital to the way we work and our culture. We want our colleagues feel included, valued, and supported at work. It is essential that we are representative and accessible for the people who work here and those who use our service.

Actions we take to embed this include:

• an anonymised shortlisting process to make sure it is fair and unbiased
• monitoring the demographic trends in our workforce and making measured, sustained efforts to improve our diversity at all levels
• providing wellbeing support and opportunities for personal and professional development for all colleagues
• creating spaces for connection and engagement through our employee network groups and social clubs
• part of the disability confident scheme
• providing reasonable adjustments
• engaging in regular inclusion learning to enhance the cultural competency of our organisation.

We know the value of having diverse, representative teams across our organisation. Which is why we particularly encourage applications from candidates who are likely to be underrepresented within the team. These include people who are:

• Asian, Black, Mixed Ethnicity or another ethnic background
• disabled
• LGBTQ

Contact and important information

If you would like to learn more about the role, please contact Peter Hastings, Solutions Architect, [email removed]

• Interviews: held onsite
• Feedback: we do not offer feedback at application stage
• Right to work: we can only consider candidates with the right to work in the UK.
• Sponsorship: we are unable to offer sponsorship (we do not have a licence).
• Applications: we do not accept CVs—please apply via the application form (‘apply now’).
• Agencies: no agencies; applications from individuals only.
• Early closure: we may close the advert early if we receive a high volume of applications.
• Salary: non negotiable

Important notice: fraudulent job postings

We have been made aware that some websites are falsely advertising our job vacancies. We only tend advertise job vacancies through these official channels:

- our website

- LinkedIn

- Civil Service Jobs

- GOV.uk

- Indeed

- Ombudsman association

- BMEjobs.co.uk

- Disabilityjob.co.uk

- Neurodiversityjobs.co.uk

- LGBTjobs.co.uk

Do not share personal details with any other websites claiming to represent us. Contact our recruitment team to report any concerns at [email removed]

We are changing our name

We are changing our name. Later this year we will become the Public Service Ombudsman. This will make it easier for people to find us and understand what we do. The service we provide will remain the same. Visit our