Software Engineer in Houghton-Le-Spring

About Us Renaissance® is a global leader in education technology. We help schools and school groups in the UK and around the world with educational assessments, practice and intervention solutions, and data analytics. Renaissance now incorporates GL Assessment (known internationally as GL Education), too – a leading provider of educational assessments. Together, our assessments offer the ideal starting point to help teachers understand their students’ strengths and pinpoint areas of need. Our teaching and learning tools then provide effective next steps, with online literacy and maths solutions that meet students exactly where we are. Worldwide, we support over 18 million students, operating in over 100 countries.

At Renaissance, our Software Engineers work across the Microsoft technology stack, using tools such as Azure, .NET, and Angular to design and deliver high-quality software that meets both customer and commercial needs. We’re looking for people who enjoy collaborating, sharing best practices, and learning from others. You’ll be encouraged to bring your experiences and ideas, helping us adapt and evolve how we work as we continue to modernise our technology and ways of working. We value curiosity, continuous improvement, and inclusive collaboration just as much as technical expertise.

Software Engineer – What You’ll Be Doing

• Work closely with your team leader and peers to plan, build, and deliver valuable outcomes for customers.
• Collaborate with more experienced colleagues to co‑coordinate work, share knowledge, and develop your skills.
• Give and receive constructive feedback to support your personal and professional development.
• Design, code, and test solutions that meet business needs and quality standards.
• Follow and contribute to shared team standards and ways of working.
• Deliver well‑defined tasks and contribute to solutions that address clearly scoped problems within the team’s domain.
• Gradually take ownership of parts of projects or initiatives by analysing problems, breaking them down, proposing incremental solutions, and communicating progress clearly.
• Demonstrate responsibility for smaller problem spaces, achieving positive and reliable outcomes.
• Build solutions that are clear, maintainable, and aligned with established best practices.

Experience We’d Love To See Includes

• Experience working in EdTech, SaaS, or another technology‑driven environment, designing and delivering software in a professional setting.
• Proficiency in one or more of the following: C#/.NET, TypeScript, JavaScript, and MS SQL.
• Experience working with an industry‑recognised software development lifecycle.
• Commercial software development experience.
• Experience working in Agile or similarly structured delivery teams (or a strong willingness to learn).
• Familiarity with design principles and development best practices.
• Experience using tools that support or automate the development process.
• Understanding of software design, databases, and application development.
• Experience troubleshooting complex issues, including working in unfamiliar codebases.
• Aware of key domain principles such as accessibility, performance, data quality, security, and maintainability — with evidence of applying these in practice.
• An understanding of customer and stakeholder needs, and how software supports them.
• The ability to manage your workload effectively, making steady progress on agreed tasks.
• A proactive approach to communicating progress, raising blockers, and seeking guidance when needed.
• A willingness to create and maintain clear, useful documentation.

This is a hybrid role, based from our Houghton‑le‑Spring office, with occasional travel to other offices for team meetings as needed. We’re open to discussing reasonable adjustments and flexible working arrangements to support your needs.

Please note: We are unable to offer sponsorship for this position, applicants must have full rights to work in the UK and be able to work in our office location.

Benefits

• 25 days per annum plus bank holidays (3 to be used for our Christmas shutdown)
• A day off for your birthday, to be used in the month of your birthday.
• Access to a benefits and discount platform with access to thousands of discounts at retailers, leisure attractions and restaurants
• BUPA healthcare, life assurance, permanent health insurance
• Pension scheme with enhanced employer contribution up to 8%
• Season ticket loan and EAP

We have an ongoing commitment to Diversity, Equity and Inclusion and have taken strides to become a more welcoming and inclusive workplace, including the introduction of our DEI Matters Network which is owned and driven by our staff. We are an equal opportunities employer. We encourage and welcome applications from all under‑represented groups, as we believe and strive for community representation within our organisation.

If you have a disability and would prefer to apply in a different format or would like us to make reasonable adjustments to enable you to apply or attend any interview, please contact us and we will talk this through with you. All your information will be kept confidential according to GDPR guidelines. Please note that we can only consider applicants who already hold a full work permit. This role is subject to DBS and background checks.