Associate Solutions Architect in Belfast

Clearance Required for this role: Not Applicable

Full time / Part time

Salary: £44,297- £49,813 per annum, with potential for further progression to £56,082 with our pay progression scheme.

Location: Hybrid. Contracted to our Wilmslow, London, Edinburgh, Cardiff or Belfast office, however, we offer flexible home and office-based working opportunities. There will be times when you will be expected to attend the office to collaborate with colleagues or travel due to business need. Please note, from Autumn 2026 our head office will relocate from Wilmslow to Manchester city centre.

Why work for the ICO?

• Pay progression scheme.
• Hybrid and flexible working options.
• 25 days paid holiday per year, plus privilege and public holidays.
• Flexi leave (up to 26 additional days leave per year).
• Pension (employer contribution around 28.9%).
• Online discount scheme to save money at major supermarkets, retailers, gyms, restaurants, insurance providers and many more.
• Health Cash Plan.
• Fantastic development opportunities to learn and progress.

Job description

The Associate Solution Architect will assist in designing IT solutions for a range of business needs. In this role, the candidate will work with other architects to translate business requirements into technical specifications and will ensure the solution designs align with company standards and architecture frameworks. The role will support the development of system designs, ensuring scalability and performance as well as contribute to the evaluation of new technologies and tools for potential use. Along with this, the role will collaborate with cross-functional teams to ensure the seamless integration of solutions as well as provide input into the creation of product roadmaps and timelines. The Associate Solution Architect will work with stakeholders across all levels of the organisation to gather and understand business requirements. The role will also ensure that solutions meet security, compliance and regulatory requirements and contribute to the creation of design-related documentation, ensuring clarity and accuracy in solution designs.

Key Responsibilities

• Assisting in the design and architecture of software solutions.
• Work closely with senior architects to review and refine technical designs.
• Participate in the creation of system architecture roadmaps.
• Help evaluate and select appropriate technologies and platforms for projects.
• Assist in the identification and mitigation of technical risks.
• Assist in creating technical documentation for solution designs and processes.
• Provide technical guidance and support to development and product teams during project execution.
• Ensure solutions are optimised for performance, scalability and security.
• Assist with the development of proof-of-concept models to demonstrate potential solutions.
• Communicating the architecture vision to technical and non-technical stakeholders and to work in multi-disciplinary teams.
• Playing an active role in the ICO Architecture community and related communities of practice where you will share your knowledge of best practice, tools and techniques.
• Helping to build a diverse, inclusive culture across the architecture community, growing awareness, inclusivity and balance.
• Working with other architects, colleagues and peers to define standards and guidance around best practice.
• Engaging and networking with people across the ICO up to Director level to understand their needs and ensure they are aligned with the Enterprise Architecture vision.

Person specification

Essential criteria assessed at application stage:

• Substantial experience relevant to the role requirements, as described in the role responsibilities and person specification, and accumulated through any combination of academic or vocational qualifications or experience.
• Certifications in architecture frameworks such as TOGAF, Zachman or similar, as well as basic certifications in cloud platforms, especially Microsoft Azure.
• An understanding of programming languages such as Python or C#.
• Experience of networking and communicating with stakeholders at senior levels.
• Experience or training in Software Development Lifecycle processes.
• Proficiency in creating solution architecture design diagrams, roadmaps and associated artefacts.

Essential criteria assessed during interview:

• In-depth knowledge of integrating diverse systems, applications and data across a solution design.
• Proven ability to design and document end-to-end solutions, including consideration of data and infrastructure components.
• Excellent analytical skills to diagnose issues, evaluate risk and develop viable solutions.
• Ability to deal with complexity and ambiguity, creative problem solving and developing innovative solutions.
• Able to communicate complex insights and principles simply and with impact, particularly across technical and non-technical audiences.
• Competent at negotiating and persuading where necessary, whilst applying a highly ethical approach.
• Proficient in creating and maintaining technical documentation and architecture diagrams.

Equality, diversity, and inclusion

The ICO is committed to promoting and enhancing equality, diversity, and inclusion. We are focused on developing a workforce that is representative of the communities we serve and together we are building an inclusive workplace where all of our colleagues have the opportunity to make a real difference. We are championing this through our Equality Diversity and Inclusion Board together with a number of staff networks. Read more about our commitment on our website.

Candidates with a disability who meet the minimum criteria for this vacancy will be invited to interview as part of the ICO’s commitment to the Disability Confident Scheme.

As part of the ICO’s commitment to our EDI objectives and creating a workplace that represents the communities and societies we serve, we guarantee an interview to candidates who declare they identify as belonging from an ethnic minority background and who meet the minimum criteria for this vacancy.

If you are disabled or have an impairment and require an alternative application method, please email the HR team.

Closing Date

Please submit your CV and cover letter by 23:59 on Sunday 8th February 2026. Your cover letter should be no more than 1,000 words and should clearly demonstrate how you meet the essential criteria for the role. We may close this vacancy early if we receive a high volume of applications. To ensure your application is considered, we encourage you to apply as soon as possible. If you require any reasonable adjustments to support your application, please contact us. In the event of a high volume of applications, we may not be able to invite all candidates who meet the minimum criteria to interview. However, we encourage you to stay in touch and apply for future roles that match your interests. All candidates who meet the minimum criteria and apply in-line with our guaranteed interview scheme for disabled and ethnic minority applicants will be interviewed.