Newcastle, United Kingdom | Posted on 11/09/2026
Scrumconnect Consulting is a multi-award-winning digital consultancy, recognised for delivering impactful and innovative technology solutions across UK government departments. Our work has positively influenced the lives of over 40 million UK citizens. We are passionate about user-centred design, agile delivery, and building digital services that make a real difference - and we're now scaling that expertise into large, high-stakes AI adoption programmes across the public sector.
Overview
We're looking for a Lead AI Engineer to be the hands-on technical builder at the core of a large-scale AI Operating Model programme for a central government department. Where the Lead Technical Architect sets direction, you turn it into working, production-grade systems - semantic search, RAG pipelines, and broader generative AI capability - integrated into complex Legacy and multi-cloud environments handling high-volume, sensitive public sector data.
You'll work inside a collaborative "Rainbow Team" alongside civil servants and the wider delivery team, staying close to the code while also mentoring engineers and helping build the internal capability the department needs to eventually run these systems without long-term reliance on external suppliers.
Key Responsibilities
Hands-On Build & Delivery
Design, build, and ship production AI components - RAG pipelines, retrieval and embedding infrastructure, orchestration logic, and integration layers - writing high-quality, tested, maintainable code and staying close to implementation rather than delegating it away.
Technical Leadership Within the Squad
Lead the engineering practice within your delivery team: set coding standards, review designs and pull requests, unblock technically complex problems, and mentor other engineers day to day.
Responsible AI in Practice
Implement the guardrails the Architect designs - bias mitigation checks, evaluation harnesses, human-in-the-loop review points - so that Responsible AI principles (ATRS alignment, NCSC "Secure by Design, " meaningful human control) are enforced in the running system, not just on paper.
Reliability, Security & Observability
Build AI services to be secure-by-default and observable in production: logging, monitoring, alerting, and rollback paths appropriate for sensitive public-sector data and high-availability requirements.
Knowledge
Lead Ai Engineer (Contract) in London employer: Scrumconnect Limited
Scrumconnect Consulting is an exceptional employer that fosters a collaborative and innovative work culture in the heart of London. With a strong emphasis on professional growth, employees are encouraged to enhance their skills through continuous learning and participation in Agile practices. The company offers competitive benefits and a dynamic environment where your contributions directly impact cutting-edge AI-driven services.
