Job Description

About The Role

Are you a Life Changer? Do you want to lean in and transform the life of a child?

Compass Community puts children first through our therapeutic, innovative approach. Integrity, Courage and Care shape how we work. We listen deeply, challenge each other and fix what needs fixing, together.

This is the work. And

we'd

like you to be part of it.

The Solution Architect is responsible for designing, governing, and assuring technology solutions that meet business needs while aligning with the transformation programme, technology strategy, architectural standards, and values.



Reporting to the CTO the role acts as a bridge between business stakeholders and delivery teams, ensuring solutions are scalable, secure, cost-effective, and fit for purpose.



The role will cover both major applications and smaller ECO-System requirements across Education, Fostering, Residential, Therapeutic Services and Central Functions.

Key Responsibilities

Design end-to-end solution architectures across applications, data, integration, and infrastructure with an AI first approach. Translate business requirements into clear architectural designs and technical specifications. Ensure solutions align with agreed architectural principles, standards, and roadmaps. Produce and maintain architecture artefacts (e.g. solution diagrams, design documents, decision logs). Work closely with product owners, PM's, business analysts, DevOps, and third-party suppliers. Engage with stakeholders to explain architectural options, risks, and trade-offs in clear, non-technical terms. Support delivery teams throughout the lifecycle, from discovery through to implementation and handover. Review and Assure technical designs produced for delivery teams and by suppliers. Identify and manage architectural risks, technical debt, and dependencies. Ensure solutions meet non-functional requirements including security, performance, resilience, and compliance.

Requirements

Minimum of 5 years' experience as a Solution Architect. Relevant qualification or equivalent experience in IT systems administration, Child Care technology, or information systems. Exposure to TOGAF, Zachman, ITIL, CoBiT, Prince2 frameworks or similar would be an advantage. Evidence of ongoing learning ability essential.

Essential

Proven experience as a Solution Architect or in a senior technical design role. Strong understanding of modern application architectures (e.g. cloud-native, API-led, microservices, AI driven). Experience designing solutions across multiple domains (applications, data, integration, infrastructure). Ability to communicate complex technical concepts clearly to non-technical audiences. Working in agile and multi-disciplinary delivery teams. Experience with cloud platforms (e.g. Azure, AWS, or GCP). Knowledge of integration patterns, data platforms, and security principles. Experience working with third-party vendors and system integrators.

Compass is an equal-opportunity employer that is committed to diversity and inclusion in the workplace. As we continue to grow, we know that we must have the most talented employees with diverse backgrounds, cultures, perspectives, and experiences to support our children and young people.