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Data Platform Engineer Jobs

Engineers who design, build, and maintain the foundational data infrastructure that powers modern data-driven organisations. A critical role in ensuring data is accessible, reliable, and scalable.

Open roles
6
Salary range
£55k – £100k
Hiring companies
4
View 6 live roles → Get an alert

Data Platform Engineers are the architects and custodians of an organisation's data infrastructure. They design, build, and maintain the systems that enable data to flow seamlessly from source to destination, ensuring that data is accessible, reliable, and scalable. This role is distinct from data science and machine learning engineering, focusing instead on the underlying data pipelines, data warehouses, and data lakes that support data-driven decision-making. Data Platform Engineers work closely with data scientists, analysts, and other stakeholders to ensure that the data infrastructure meets the organisation's needs.

What the role does

Inside the role of a Data Platform Engineer

A typical week for a Data Platform Engineer is a mix of designing and implementing new data pipelines, maintaining and optimising existing infrastructure, and collaborating with cross-functional teams.

  1. 01
    Design and implement new data pipelines
  2. 02
    Optimise and maintain existing data infrastructure
  3. 03
    Collaborate with data scientists and analysts
  4. 04
    Monitor and troubleshoot data flow issues
  5. 05
    Document and communicate system changes and improvements
Salary on the board

£55k – £100k

Based on advertised midpoints across the 32 UK listings priced in pounds in the last 12 months. Base salary only.

Salary visibility
72% of listings advertise a salary.
By seniority
£k base
Senior
55
100
11 jobs
Lead
70
85
11 jobs
Skills & tools

What hiring managers ask for

% of 21 listings posted in the last 12 months that mention each skill, extracted from job descriptions.

CI/CD
67%
Python
67%
SQL
57%
Terraform
52%
Data Governance
33%
PySpark
29%
AWS
29%
Data Modelling
29%
Azure
24%
Databricks
19%
IAM
19%
S3
19%
Career ladder

From Junior to Principal

A typical UK progression for data platform engineers. Years are guidance — strong people move faster, and many senior folks sidestep into research, product or management.

  1. Level 1

    Junior Data Platform Engineer

    0–2 yrs

    Assists in the design and implementation of data pipelines, with a focus on learning and supporting more senior engineers.

  2. Level 2

    Data Platform Engineer

    2–5 yrs

    Takes ownership of specific data pipelines and infrastructure components, ensuring they are reliable and scalable.

  3. Level 3

    Senior Data Platform Engineer

    5–8 yrs

    Leads the design and implementation of complex data infrastructure projects, mentoring junior engineers and driving best practices.

  4. Level 4

    Principal Data Platform Engineer

    8+ yrs

    Strategises and oversees the entire data infrastructure, influencing organisational data architecture and leading cross-functional initiatives.

Pathway

How to become a Data Platform Engineer

There's no single route, but most people follow some version of these steps.

  1. 1

    Learn the basics

    Start by gaining a solid understanding of data engineering fundamentals, including ETL processes, data warehousing, and SQL.

  2. 2

    Build foundational skills

    Gain hands-on experience with data pipeline tools and technologies, such as Apache Kafka, Apache Spark, and cloud data services.

  3. 3

    Specialise in data infrastructure

    Focus on designing and implementing robust data platforms, including data lakes and data warehouses, to support data-driven applications.

  4. 4

    Lead projects and teams

    Take on leadership roles, managing complex data infrastructure projects and mentoring junior engineers.

  5. 5

    Influence organisational strategy

    Strategise and influence the overall data architecture of the organisation, driving innovation and best practices.

Live jobs

6 live roles

Harnham - Data and Analytics Recruitment

Data Platform Engineer

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  • Newcastle upon Tyne
  • Hybrid · 2 days in office
  • £84,000 pa
  • Senior

Own and oversee a business-critical enterprise data platform built on Microsoft Azure, acting as technical lead for architecture, scalability, governance and operational excellence. Work with Infrastructure, Security and Architecture teams on CI/CD, automation, monitoring and Infrastructure-as-Code, supporting production and incident management while enabling Data Engineers and shaping platform strategy across Data and AI initiatives.

Microsoft Azure · Azure Data Factory · Microsoft Fabric +5

Last month

Pontoon

Senior Data Platform Engineer - Compliance Assurance

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  • Chester
  • Hybrid · 3 days in office
  • Senior
  • Contract

Hands-on engineering role building and maintaining scalable data platforms for compliance assurance in a regulated enterprise. You own the full data lifecycle, from ingesting source systems via Kafka and NiFi to streaming, processing and automated reconciliation controls that flag missing records, mismatches and exceptions. Developer-led, with Python, PySpark, Hadoop/Hive and CI/CD, plus production troubleshooting and auditability.

Apache Kafka · Apache NiFi · Hadoop +7

3 weeks ago

SoCode

Staff Data Platform Engineer

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  • London
  • Hybrid · 2 days in office
  • £100,000 – £130,000 pa
  • Lead · manages people

Take technical ownership of a large-scale analytical data platform, leading architecture, performance and cost optimisation of multi-tenant ClickHouse/OLAP systems. Build automation, observability and capacity management, shape a secure Data-as-a-Service offering and the data foundations for agentic AI, while mentoring and line-managing a small team hands-on.

ClickHouse

Last month

Pontoon

Senior Data Platform Engineer - Compliance Assurance

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  • Chester
  • Hybrid · 3 days in office
  • Senior
  • Contract

Hands-on engineering role building and maintaining scalable data platforms for compliance assurance in a regulated enterprise. Owns the end-to-end data lifecycle, from ingesting source systems through streaming, processing and storage to automated reconciliation and data-quality controls. Developer-led, with Python, PySpark, Kafka and NiFi at its core.

Apache Kafka · Apache NiFi · Hadoop +7

3 weeks ago

Experis · 501–1000 people · Late stage

AI, Data & ML Platform Engineering Opportunities

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  • United Kingdom
  • Remote
  • £400 – £500 pd
  • Contract

Multiple contract roles across a large-scale technology programme, spanning data, ML and AI platform engineering, architecture, governance, security and operations. Work includes building and running platforms using Python, SQL, Trino/Starburst, DataHub, JupyterHub, OpenSearch, Entra ID/OIDC, FluxCD/Argo CD and Helm, with both hands-on and technical leadership openings.

DataHub · Trino · Starburst +9

Last month
Humanoid logo

Humanoid · 11–50 people · Series A

Senior/Staff Software Engineer - Data Platform

  • London
  • On-site
  • Senior
  • Permanent

Build an internal data platform from the ground up, defining architecture for petabyte-scale robot telemetry pipelines, compute infrastructure and orchestration. Work spans backend services, data warehousing, BI dashboards and MLOps evaluation workflows, collaborating closely with machine learning teams on humanoid robot training data.

Kubernetes

4 months ago
Hiring locations

Where this role is hiring

The locations with the most live listings for this role today.

London

Location
1 open

Newcastle

Location
1 open
FAQs

Common questions

  • Data Platform Engineers commonly use tools like Apache Kafka, Apache Spark, AWS Redshift, Google BigQuery, and various cloud data services to build and manage data infrastructure.

  • A Data Platform Engineer focuses on building and maintaining the data infrastructure, ensuring data is accessible and reliable. A Data Scientist, on the other hand, uses this data to perform analysis and build models.

  • Key skills include strong programming abilities, knowledge of data storage and retrieval systems, experience with ETL processes, and the ability to design scalable and secure data pipelines.

  • The typical career progression includes moving from Junior to Senior, then to Principal Data Platform Engineer, with increasing responsibilities and leadership roles.

  • Salaries for Data Platform Engineers can vary widely based on experience, location, and industry. For more detailed salary information, please refer to the salary section on this page.

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