Senior Service Designer

IR35 Status: Inside

Start: ASAP

A Senior Service Designer is required for our Government Client to coordinate Service Design activities across their technology and operations portfolio, ensuring designs are robust, cost effective and aligned with the clients strategic objectives. You will contribute to the development of service designs, standards and guide teams and stakeholders to deliver secure, scalable and supportable services that meets user and business needs.

You will report into the Lead Service Designer.

• Degree or equivalent experience in Computer Science or Information Technology.
• Hold a professional level certification such as ITIL (Foundation or higher), BCS Certificate in Service Design, ISO/IEC 20000 Practitioner (Service Management Standard), Service Integration and Management (SIAM), Lean Six Sigma, TOGAF, AgilePM, or equivalent experience.
• Translate business, user, and operational requirements into coherent, efficient, and cost-effective service designs.
• Create end to end Service Design Packages (SDPs).
• Understand Agile and user-centred design approaches, and how they integrate with service delivery.
• Experience leading and line managing Service Designers, providing direction, coaching, and professional development to build capability and excellence across functions.
• Track record of engaging with stakeholders and governance forums to provide clear, evidence-based service advice.
• Experience designing secure or air-gapped platforms within the government sector.
• Knowledge of NCSC, GDS, and UK government security frameworks, including Secure by Design, Cloud Security Principles, Government Functional Standards, and the Technology Code of Practice.
• Demonstrate in-depth understanding of service design principles, IT service management frameworks (e.g. ITIL), and end-to-end service lifecycle management.
• Understand enterprise and technical architecture concepts, ensuring service designs align with strategic and operational objectives.
• Lead co-design workshops and apply human-centred design methods to solve strategic problems.
• Awareness of accessibility, inclusion, and usability standards within digital and operational service design.
• Membership of a recognised professional body such as BCS or IET.
• Experience of designing for government security classification OFFICIAL and above.
• Awareness of AI technologies to enable operational efficiency and data-driven decisions.

Author end-to-end service designs that meet user and business needs across the full-service lifecycle.

Produce clear, detailed, and reusable design artefacts, including service blueprints, customer journeys, and design specifications.

Contribute to the definition of service models, SLAs, OLAs, and underpinning contracts that reflect technical, operational, and security requirements.

Ensure service designs are secure, scalable, resilient, and cost-effective, supporting alignment with enterprise architecture and ITIL practices.

Develop and maintain service design packs (SDPs) and documentation to support transition and operational readiness.

Apply established design standards, templates, and processes to maintain quality and consistency across services.

Contribute to the development and refinement of shared design artefacts and tools used within the Service Design function.

Work closely with Service Owners, Product Owners, Architects, and delivery teams to capture requirements and translate them into practical, supportable service designs.

Participate in design reviews and assurance activities, presenting designs for review and incorporating feedback to meet business outcomes.

Engage with suppliers and partners to validate service components, dependencies, and integration points.

Identify and record design risks, recommending mitigation actions and ensuring traceability throughout the service lifecycle.

Apply security and compliance standards in line with government and organisational policy.

Support change and transition activities, ensuring new or modified services are ready for live operation.