Laboratory Information Management Systems (LIMS) Architect(CR769 )

Posting date:	10 September 2025
Salary:	£56,375 to £69,105 per year
Additional salary information:	National-£56375-£62,830 London-£62,000-£69,105 Pro rata for job share and part time
Hours:	Full time
Closing date:	30 September 2025
Location:	PH1 1RX
Company:	Government Recruitment Service
Job type:	Permanent
Job reference:	424876/14

Summary

The Science Directorate (SD) delivers high quality, high impact and highly relevant multidisciplinary science. Our People are diverse, talented, engaged and inspired to deliver innovative outcomes. Surveillance and Laboratory Services Department (SLSD) is one of the departments that makes up the Science Directorate.

SLSD provides a range of diagnostic testing and surveillance services on behalf of Defra and the devolved governments.

The APHA Laboratory Information Management System (LIMS) is used throughout the APHA Science Directorate, but primarily SLSD, both as a conventional LIMS system and as a critical data asset. APHA’s LIMS is critical to Defra’s animal disease management capability, enabling efficient, timely and accurate management of testing for animal diseases and pathogens enables disease outbreaks to be contained to protect UK agriculture, imports and exports of live animals to be biosecure and confidence to be improved in the disease freedom status for UK food and farming.

The two Grade 7 APHA LIMS Architects oversee the direction of and the scientific architecture within APHA’s extensive and complex LIMS system. These roles work closely with APHA Science and technology leaders and with colleagues from Defra’s IT department – Digital Data Technology Security (DDTS) – to create an ambitious vision for APHA’s LIMS system as well as a realistic and deliverable roadmap that delivers on this vision.

These roles will prioritise investing in APHA’s current LIMS system to ensure it is more resilient and secure, accelerating the digitisation and transformation of the way APHA carries out its Science and improving the scientific services we offer to internal and external customers.

Your responsibilities may include, but not limited to the following:

• Build the architecture and design framework for APHA’s LIMS.
• Define strategy and play a central role in assuring services.
• Ensure and assure the continued alignment of LIMS solution development & delivery with APHA’s, Defra’s, and broader government’s strategic objectives.
• Ensure and assure the continued alignment of LIMS solution development & delivery with APHA’s legal, regulatory, and compliance obligations.
• Regularly collaborate and find agreement with senior stakeholders, providing direction and constructive challenge.
• Contribute to the overall management of technical and operational risk in relation to the APHA LIMS systems & service.
• Contribute to the overall management of business continuity in relation to the APHA LIMS systems & service.
• Contribute to the overall management and improvement of performance in relation to the APHA LIMS systems & service.
• Be proactive in identifying problems and translating these into non-technical descriptions that can be widely understood.
• Act as a mentor and coach to junior colleagues and may also be required to functional manage on a project basis, though no direct line management responsibilities apply.

Proud member of the Disability Confident employer scheme

About Disability Confident

A Disability Confident employer will generally offer an interview to any applicant that declares they have a disability and meets the minimum criteria for the job as defined by the employer. It is important to note that in certain recruitment situations such as high-volume, seasonal and high-peak times, the employer may wish to limit the overall numbers of interviews offered to both disabled people and non-disabled people. For more details please go to Disability Confident.