Learning Technologies Developer

The Role

Responsible for the design, development, deployment and ongoing operational support of bespoke web based systems that support teaching and learning for the Faculty, University, and partner organisations. This involves leading the technical delivery of digital services through the full system lifecycle including requirements gathering, system design, development, testing, deployment, documentation, support and continuous improvement. The postholder works closely with academic, administrative and technical stakeholders to translate University needs into secure, scalable and sustainable technical solutions ensuring alignment with University standards and digital strategy.

Key Accountabilities

• Translate stakeholder requirements into clear technical specifications and deliver scalable, sustainable and secure solutions.
• Lead or contribute to the full service lifecycle, including discovery, requirements analysis, solution design, development, testing, documentation, deployment and ongoing support and review.
• Lead the technical delivery of appropriate projects, working closely with colleagues and representing the team in project environments.
• Develop and maintain systems embedded within operational teaching environments, including services delivered across NHS and external partner sites where applicable.
• Integrate institutional and external data sources in collaboration with central IT services, ensuring secure data handling and compliance with University governance and information security policies.
• Ensure services remain reliable, resilient and maintainable through structured deployment processes, version control, monitoring and effective incident response.
• Provide expert technical advice to academic and administrative colleagues regarding system functionality, enhancements, feasibility and future development opportunities.
• Contribute to project planning, prioritisation, release management and coordinated delivery across multiple concurrent services.
• Produce and maintain comprehensive technical and user documentation to support sustainable and transferable service delivery.
• Promote good development practice, coding standards, knowledge sharing and continuous improvement within the team.
• Support the ongoing enhancement, sustainability and stability of the Faculty’s learning technology infrastructure.
• Undertake other duties commensurate with the grade of the post as reasonably required.

The Person

Knowledge, Skills and Experience

• Excellent knowledge and proven ability to work productively within Python including Web Frameworks such as Django.
• Strong experience of working with databases such as MySQL and source code Management Tools specifically Git.
• Proven experience developing and supporting live operational web-based systems in a complex enterprise environment.
• Strong knowledge of HTML, CSS, JavaScript/JQuery and JSON.
• Experience integrating web services and APIs to enable secure and effective data exchange between systems.
• Ability to prioritise workload effectively and manage multiple concurrent workstreams.
• Ability to gather, analyse and translate stakeholder requirements into effective technical solutions.
• Experience contributing to structured deployment, testing and incident response processes.
• Excellent communication skills with the ability to explain technical concepts to non-technical audiences.
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills.

Desirable

• Experience of working with Web technologies (Apache, Memcache, WSGI) and Linux based servers.
• Experience delivering services across cross-organisational environments (e.g. NHS or external partners).
• Experience utilising open-source technologies to deliver secure web-based services.
• Experience of the higher education environment.
• Experience of planning, researching, designing, implementing and testing system modifications, enhancements and custom built solutions.

Attributes and Behaviours

• Generates practical and sustainable technical solutions aligned with Faculty and University objectives.
• Works collaboratively with academic, administrative and technical colleagues to deliver high-quality services.
• Demonstrates initiative and takes ownership of service stability and improvement.
• Manages time and resources by prioritising and organising effectively.
• Communicates effectively with a range of stakeholders and builds positive working relationships.
• Promotes continuous improvement and adopts new approaches where beneficial.

Qualifications

• Degree or equivalent qualification in relevant discipline, or significant relevant practical experience.

Newcastle University is a global University where everyone is treated with dignity and respect. As a University of Sanctuary, we aim to provide a welcoming place of safety for all, offering opportunities to people fleeing violence and persecution. We are committed to being a fully inclusive university which actively recruits, supports and retains colleagues from all sectors of society. We value diversity as well as celebrate, support and thrive on the contributions of all of our employees and the communities they represent. We are proud to be an equal opportunities employer and encourage applications from individuals who can complement our existing teams, we believe that success is built on having teams whose backgrounds and experiences reflect the diversity of our university and student population. At Newcastle University we hold a Gold award in recognition of our good employment practices for the advancement of gender equality. We also hold a Bronze award in recognition of our work towards tackling race inequality in higher education REC. We are an employer and will offer an interview to disabled applicants who meet the essential criteria for the role as part of the offer and interview scheme. In addition, we are a member of the Euraxess initiative supporting researchers in Europe.