DV-Cleared Cloud & Platform Engineer — Hybrid UK in Cheltenham

Cloud & Platform Engineers – National Security Opportunities

Active DV / eDV Clearance required

Hybrid opportunities across the UK

£55,000 - £100,000+ (depending on experience, level and clearance)

Thinking about your next move? One conversation I've been having more than ever recently is with Cloud and Platform Engineers who aren't actively looking to leave. They're generally happy where they are. They're simply curious. Curious about which organisations are genuinely investing in engineering, where cloud platforms are becoming more mature, and which teams are giving engineers the autonomy, flexibility and technical ownership they've been looking for. Interestingly, salary is rarely the first thing they mention. The conversations tend to centre around engineering culture, modern technology, learning from talented people and finding somewhere they'll still be excited to work in three years' time.

What I'm Seeing Across the Market

Having spent the last couple of years working exclusively with Cloud, Platform and DevSecOps engineers across the National Security community, a few themes have become pretty clear. The organisations consistently attracting the strongest engineers have more in common than you might think. They're investing in modern AWS and Azure platforms rather than simply maintaining legacy infrastructure. Platform Engineering has moved from aspiration to reality. Terraform, Kubernetes and automation are becoming standard engineering practices rather than future roadmaps. Teams are staying deliberately lean, giving engineers genuine ownership instead of narrowly defined responsibilities. And perhaps the biggest change of all? Flexibility, trust and engineering culture are no longer 'nice to have'—they're often the deciding factor. That's exactly the type of organisations I choose to partner with.

The Opportunities

Rather than representing a single employer, I work closely with a carefully selected group of engineering-led organisations across the National Security sector. That includes innovative SMEs, specialist consultancies and product-focused businesses delivering some of the UK's most interesting secure cloud and platform capability. Depending on what you're looking for, opportunities include:

• Building secure AWS and Azure platforms supporting critical UK capability
• Designing modern Platform Engineering environments using Kubernetes, Terraform and Infrastructure as Code
• Leading cloud migration and infrastructure modernisation programmes
• Developing automation that improves resilience and removes operational overhead
• Working alongside experienced engineers in collaborative, low-ego technical teams
• Influencing platform strategy rather than simply maintaining existing estates

Some organisations are scaling rapidly. Others are long-established names with outstanding reputations in the National Security community. Some offer consultancy with genuine engineering depth. Others provide long-term product ownership. The right answer depends entirely on what you're looking for from your next move.

Clearance

Most of the organisations I support are delivering work on live National Security programmes, so active DV or eDV clearance is typically a prerequisite. That said, every so often an opportunity arises where an exceptional SC-cleared engineer—someone with the right technical background and a realistic route to higher clearance—can be brought in and sponsored. Those opportunities are limited, but they do exist, so if you're unsure where you fit, I'm always happy to have an honest conversation.

Who I'm Looking To Speak With

I'm particularly interested in speaking with engineers who have experience across areas such as:

• AWS and/or Azure
• Platform Engineering
• DevOps
• Infrastructure as Code (Terraform, CloudFormation or Pulumi)
• Kubernetes and containerisation
• Linux
• CI/CD and automation
• Python, Bash or PowerShell
• Site Reliability Engineering
• Secure cloud environments

Whether you're a Cloud Engineer, Platform Engineer, DevOps Engineer, Infrastructure Engineer or SRE, I'd be happy to hear from you.

Why Speak To Me?

The best engineers rarely move because somebody sends them a job description. They move because somebody takes the time to understand what they're looking for and introduces them to organisations that genuinely fit. Over the last couple of years I've built relationships with many of the engineering-led organisations consistently attracting positive feedback from the people I've placed there. Whether it's engineering culture, hybrid working, leadership, technical ownership or long-term progression, I'll always give you an honest view of where I think you'll thrive—not simply where I happen to have a vacancy.

Many of the engineers I've helped over the last year weren't actively looking when we first spoke. They simply wanted a clearer picture of the market before deciding whether it was the right time to move. Not actively looking? That's completely fine. Some of the best conversations I have each week are with engineers who simply want an honest view of the market. If you're curious about which organisations are genuinely investing, how engineering cultures compare, or where the most interesting cloud and platform work is happening across the National Security community, I'm always happy to share what I'm seeing. If nothing else, you'll come away with a clearer picture of the market—even if your next move is still a year away.