Principle Platform Engineer

Chaucer
2 days ago
Create job alert

Principal Platform Engineer (AWS) £120,000 – £140,000 + benefits
Remote-first (UK) with occasional client-site travel

We're hiring for a brand-new Principal Platform Engineer role for one of our long standing clients and looking for a cool person who wants to shape, not just deliver, cloud platforms at scale.

The company design and build some of the most secure AWS environments in the UK, supporting national security, defence, and highly regulated public sector organisations.

This is a 60% hands-on / 40% hands-off role, ideal for a senior engineer who still loves being close to the tech, but also thrives on architecture ownership, stakeholder influence, and team leadership.

You’ll play a pivotal role in defining AWS platform strategy, leading delivery across complex programmes, and acting as a trusted technical voice for both clients and internal teams. If you’ve worked with AWS Landing Zones at scale, this is where you’ll do your best work. (but that's not essential) 

What you’ll be doing
Own and evolve AWS platform architecture across complex, multi-account, highly secure environments

Design, implement and optimise AWS Landing Zones, 

Act as a technical leader and escalation point across multiple projects and client engagements

Balance hands-on engineering with technical leadership, design authority and stakeholder management

Build and maintain Infrastructure as Code using Terraform, CloudFormation and AWS CDK

Embed security-by-design, integrating services such as IAM, KMS, GuardDuty, Security Hub and Inspector

Design CI/CD pipelines enabling self-service, repeatable and auditable deployments

Partner closely with AWS, internal delivery teams, and senior client stakeholders

Mentor and lead engineers, raising the bar for engineering quality, documentation and best practice

Skills:  Essential

Significant hands-on experience designing and running AWS platforms at scale

Strong background in secure cloud architecture for regulated environments

Proven experience balancing technical delivery with leadership and stakeholder management

Infrastructure as Code expertise (Terraform / CloudFormation / CDK)

Strong understanding of AWS networking, IAM, encryption and security patterns

Eligibility for SC clearance

Nice to have

AWS Landing Zone accelerator or framework experience

Kubernetes / EKS and container platforms

Observability tooling (Grafana, Prometheus, ELK, OpenTelemetry)

Python, Go or similar for automation

Experience working directly with AWS on architecture or delivery

The nitty and gritty: 
£120,000 – £140,000 salary depending on experience

Remote-first working, with meaningful but limited client travel

Opportunity to shape a new role with real autonomy and influence

Work on nationally critical, genuinely interesting projects

Collaborate with senior engineers, AWS specialists and industry leaders

25 days holiday + bank holidays

Up to 5% employer pension contribution

Related Jobs

View all jobs

Mgr of IT Engineering

Technical Architect

Senior Aerospace Systems Engineer — Air Platform Lead & MBSE

Senior Software Engineer

Aircraft Mechanic / Avionic Technician

Senior Propulsion Engineer

Subscribe to Future Tech Insights for the latest jobs & insights, direct to your inbox.

By subscribing, you agree to our privacy policy and terms of service.

Industry Insights

Discover insightful articles, industry insights, expert tips, and curated resources.

How to Write a Space Industry Job Ad That Attracts the Right People

The UK space sector is growing rapidly. From satellite manufacturing and launch services to Earth observation, space data, communications and downstream applications, organisations across the UK are hiring engineers, scientists, software specialists and operations professionals to support increasingly complex space missions. Yet many employers struggle to attract the right candidates. Space industry job adverts often receive very few applications, or attract candidates whose experience does not align with the realities of space programmes. At the same time, experienced space professionals frequently ignore adverts that feel vague, over-ambitious or disconnected from how space projects actually operate. In most cases, the issue is not a lack of talent — it is the clarity and quality of the job advert. Space professionals are systems-focused, risk-aware and highly selective. A poorly written job ad signals weak programme maturity and unrealistic expectations. A clear, well-written one signals credibility, technical seriousness and long-term intent. This guide explains how to write a space industry job ad that attracts the right people, improves applicant quality and positions your organisation as a credible employer in the UK space sector.

Maths for Space Jobs: The Only Topics You Actually Need (& How to Learn Them)

UK space careers can look intimidating from the outside. Job adverts mention “systems engineering” “mission assurance” “GN&C” “RF” “payloads” “flight dynamics” “verification” “ECSS” & suddenly you’re wondering if you need a maths degree just to apply. You don’t. For most UK space jobs, the maths you actually use clusters into a handful of practical topics that map directly to real work across satellites, launch, ground segment, downstream data, mission ops & space software. This article strips it down to what matters most for job readiness plus a 6-week learning plan, portfolio projects & a resources section you can use immediately. UK space is also actively focused on growth & skills. The government’s National Space Strategy sets ambitions to grow the UK’s space ecosystem & spread employment across the UK. The Space Sector Skills Survey 2023 highlights recruitment challenges plus the importance of new skills & technologies including AI & ML. Recent industry reporting also estimates UK space industry employment at 55,550 FTEs plus wider supply-chain jobs. So learning the right maths is not an academic exercise. It’s a practical way to widen the roles you can credibly target.

Neurodiversity in UK Space Careers: Turning Different Thinking into a Superpower

The UK space sector has quietly become one of the most exciting places to build a career. From small satellites & launch services to Earth observation, navigation, in-orbit servicing & space data startups, the industry needs people who can solve hard problems in smart ways. Those people are not all “typical” engineers or scientists – and that’s a strength, not a weakness. If you live with ADHD, autism or dyslexia, you may have been told your brain is “too distracted”, “too literal” or “too disorganised” for precision work in the space sector. In reality, many of the traits that made school or previous jobs difficult can be major assets in space engineering, mission operations & space data roles. This guide is written for neurodivergent job seekers exploring UK space careers. We’ll look at: What neurodiversity means in a space industry context How ADHD, autism & dyslexia strengths map to common space roles Practical workplace adjustments you can request under UK law How to talk about neurodivergence in applications & interviews By the end, you’ll have a clearer sense of where you might thrive in the UK space sector – & how to turn “different thinking” into a genuine superpower.