Lead QA/Test Engineer - SC Elligible - Up to £55k - New Role in Cheltenham

Lead QA/Test Engineer - SC Elligible - Up to £55k - New Role

A growing organisation requires an experienced and proactive Lead QA/Test Engineer to lead and develop QA and testing across its delilvery function. This is a hands‑on leadership role for someone who combines strong manual testing expertise with the ability to introduce fit‑for‑purpose automation, improve test processes, and embed a quality‑first mindset across delivery teams. The successful candidate will work closely with developers, business analysts, project managers, product stakeholders, and IT leadership to ensure solutions are reliable, accessible, well tested, and ready for release.

In addition to overseeing day‑to‑day testing activity, the role will be responsible for defining standards, improving traceability and reporting, mentoring team members, and helping the organisation mature its overall approach to quality engineering. Other duties will include:

• Planning and executing hands‑on functional, regression, system, integration, and user acceptance support testing across multiple applications and change initiatives.
• Creating, reviewing, and maintaining high‑quality test plans, test cases, test scripts, and test data that provide clear coverage against business and technical requirements.
• Assessing current testing practices and introducing pragmatic automation approaches, frameworks, and tools that improve repeatability, efficiency, and release confidence.
• Defining and embeding QA standards, test governance, and quality gates within the software development lifecycle.
• Working with delivery teams to shift quality left by improving requirement clarity, acceptance criteria, testability, and early defect prevention.
• Identifying opportunities to streamline testing workflows, reduce manual effort where appropriate, and improve the consistency of quality assurance practices across projects/delivery.
• Support the integration of testing activities into delivery tooling and release processes, including test managementand reporting through Azure DevOps.
• Provide day-to-day leadership, coaching, and mentoring to QA team members, supporting their development, workload planning, and delivery of high‑quality outcomes.
• Champion best practice in test planning, defect management, release readiness, and continuous improvement across the wider delivery function.

Suitable candidates will have the folloiwng:

• Significant experience in software testing and quality assurance, including hands‑on manual testing, test analysis, defect management, and test case design within complex delivery environments.
• Demonstrable experience leading or mentoring QA professionals and influencing quality practices across multidisciplinary teams.
• Good understanding of software development lifecycles, QA methodologies, release management, and agile or hybrid delivery approaches.
• Experience with test management and work tracking tools such as Azure DevOps, including maintaining test artefacts, defects, and reporting.
• Knowledge of automation concepts and experience with, or the ability to introduce, automated testing tools and frameworks such as Selenium, Cypress, or Playwright.
• Experience establishing or maturing a QA function, including introducing standards, frameworks, and governance
• Familiarity with CI/CD pipelines and the integration of automated testing into build and release processes.
• Relevant professional certification such as ISTQB, or equivalent practical experience demonstrating strong QA discipline.
• Strong understanding of manual testing techniques, including functional, regression, integration, system, and user acceptance support testing.
• Experience writing and maintaining clear test plans, test cases, test scripts, test data, and defect records.
• Working knowledge of test management and delivery tools such as Azure DevOps, including traceability, defect tracking, and reporting.
• Knowledge of test automation frameworks and tools such as Selenium, Cypress, or Playwright, with the ability to identify where automation adds value.
• Good understanding of software development lifecycles, release management, and quality assurance practices within agile or hybrid delivery models.