Lead Data Scientist (SEL & SWL)NHS

Job summary

Can you turn advanced Data Science into measurable improvements in healthcare?

We are looking for an exceptional Senior Data Scientist who combines deep technical expertise and methodological rigour with strategic thinking, collaboration and a strong focus on measurable impact.

This is a senior technical Data Science leadership role, rather than a conventional analytical post. We are looking for someone who can identify where Data Science can make a meaningful difference, select and challenge the appropriate methodology, develop technically rigorous solutions and help take them through to operational use.

You will work across Data Science, Data Engineering and Analytics, applying advanced statistical, Machine Learning and AI approaches to complex healthcare and organisational problems and ensuring that successful solutions are reproducible, scalable and capable of delivering measurable value. This reflects the JD's requirement for technical leadership, methodological authority, advanced modelling and translation of strategic and operational challenges into Data Science problems.

Main duties of the job

The Opportunity

You will have the opportunity to help shape and mature Data Science across South East and South West London, applying advanced methods to challenges spanning Population Health Management, strategic commissioning, inequalities, planning and service improvement.

The opportunity goes beyond developing sophisticated models. You will influence how Data Science is operationalised--strengthening methodological standards, Reproducible Analytical Pipelines, automation, model validation and assurance, and the integration of Data Science with Data Engineering and Analytics.

You will have scope to identify high-value problems, determine the appropriate analytical methodologies and help take successful solutions from experimentation through to deployment, monitoring and evaluation.

Working across technical, analytical and healthcare teams, you will help turn advanced Data Science into reproducible, scalable and sustainable analytical products with demonstrable organisational and healthcare value.

Job description

Who are we looking for?

We are looking for an accomplished Data Scientist with substantial experience in advanced statistics, predictive modelling and Machine Learning, together with strong technical capability in Python and SQL.

You will understand how to translate complex problems into clearly defined analytical questions, determine whether Data Science is the appropriate solution, select the right methodology and ensure models are appropriately designed, tested, validated and evaluated.

You will combine technical depth with strategic and analytical judgement. You will be comfortable challenging assumptions and methodologies, working through ambiguity and explaining complex technical concepts, including uncertainty and limitations, to senior and non-technical audiences.

You will also be highly collaborative, working across Data Science, Data Engineering and Analytics, as well as with clinicians, commissioners, operational teams and other stakeholders, to develop solutions that address real-world healthcare challenges.

Above all, we are interested not simply in what you have built, but what became measurably better because of your work.

What makes the role different?

The defining feature of this role is the expectation that you willoperationalise Data Science.

Success will not be measured by the number or complexity of models developed. We are interested in whether Data Science solutions can move successfully through the full lifecycle:

Problem definition methodology data preparation modelling validation deployment monitoring evaluation measurable benefit

You will provide senior technical and methodological authority, challenging analytical approaches where necessary and ensuring that methods and models are appropriate for the problem being addressed.

You will work closely with Data Engineers to ensure that the data preparation, orchestration, transformation and pipelines underpinning Data Science products are robust, reproducible and scalable.

You will help embed Reproducible Analytical Pipelines (RAP), MLOps, automation, version control, testing and model monitoring, enabling successful models to become sustainable analytical products rather than remaining experimental prototypes.

You will also provide methodological assurance around model validity, uncertainty, assumptions, limitations, bias, fairness, explainability and model drift, helping ensure that Data Science and AI solutions are appropriately validated, monitored and understood. These responsibilities are explicitly reflected in the JD's requirements for model risk, validation, audit, bias, fairness, drift and explainability.

Ultimately, we are looking for someone who can connect technical and methodological excellence with measurable organisational and healthcare benefit.

Why join us?

You will work within an integrated Intelligence & Insights function supporting South East and South West London, alongside Data Scientists, Data Engineers, Population Health specialists and wider analytical teams working with rich and complex health and care data.

Your work will support Population Health Management, strategic commissioning, inequalities, planning and service improvement, providing the opportunity to apply advanced methods to questions with direct relevance to healthcare services and the populations they serve.

You will join an environment where Data Science, Data Engineering and Analytics work together, creating the opportunity to take successful ideas beyond experimentation and turn them into sustainable analytical capability that supports better evidence and decision-making.

If you are an accomplished Data Scientist who combines technical depth, methodological authority, strategic thinking and collaboration with a determination to turn Data Science into measurable real-world value, we would like to hear from you.

• Lead advanced Data Science, statistical modelling, Machine Learning and AI provide technical and methodological leadership in the design and development of predictive, inferential, causal, forecasting, optimisation, risk-stratification and population-segmentation solutions
• Translate strategic and operational problems into high-value Data Science solutions work with stakeholders to define problems, identify appropriate analytical approaches and prioritise use cases capable of delivering meaningful and measurable organisational or healthcare benefit.
• Ensure analytical and methodological rigour throughout model development set standards for model design, experimentation, testing, validation and evaluation, ensuring models are statistically robust, reproducible and appropriate for their intended purpose.
• Operationalise Data Science from development through to production work closely with Data Engineers and analysts to establish end-to-end processes covering data preparation, feature engineering, modelling, validation, deployment, monitoring and ongoing evaluation. The JD specifically expects the postholder to oversee the development of data-engineering pipelines and data preparation supporting models.
• Develop scalable Reproducible Analytical Pipelines (RAP) and drive automation move manual and difficult-to-reproduce analytical processes towards automated, transparent, auditable and reusable workflows, improving the efficiency and scalability of Data Science and the wider analytical function.
• Drive measurable improvements in analytical productivity and delivery use Data Science, AI and automation to reduce processing time and manual effort, increase reuse, improve analytical performance and release capacity for higher-value analytical work.
• Provide assurance and responsible governance of models and AI lead model validation and audit, ensure risks, assumptions and limitations are documented, and establish appropriate monitoring of bias, fairness, explainability and model drift.
• Work collaboratively across Data Science, Data Engineering and Analytics develop solutions jointly with Data Platform Engineers, analysts, clinicians and operational stakeholders, ensuring models are supported by robust data preparation and can operate effectively in real-world settings.
• Translate complex Data Science into actionable insight and decision support interpret model outputs, uncertainty and implications and communicate them clearly to senior, clinical, operational and non-technical audiences, enabling advanced analytics to support better decision-making.
• Develop Data Science capability across the wider analytical function mentor analysts and technical colleagues, provide expert guidance on appropriate analytical methods, coach colleagues in modelling and storytelling, develop a Data Science community of practice and evaluate emerging techniques and technologies.

We are looking for someone who can:identify the right problem select the appropriate methodology build a technically rigorous solution automate and productionise it demonstrate quantifiable benefit.

That is the clearest expression of what distinguishes the role: not simply the ability to undertake sophisticated Data Science, but the ability to turn it into a rigorous, operational and measurable capability.

Please see the attached job description and person specification for full details of the duties and responsibilities of the role.

About us

In 2025, the boards of NHS South East London ICB and NHS South West London ICB entered into a clustering arrangement, meaning that we share a chair, chief executive officer and an executive team, but we remain as separate, statutory organisations.

This also means that the ICBs will share some teams, who will be working across both organisations. Some teams will also be working across both geographical areas and integrated care systems.

ICBs are also changing, with a clear focus on strategic commissioning and delivering neighbourhood working.

This is an exciting time to work within our ICBs. We currently have the opportunity both to shape the future of our clustered organisations, and to be part of a radical transformation of care for the local people and communities across south London.

And while our two ICBs are different in some ways, improving lives for the people we serve is at the core of what we are both here to do.

Please note as you can only be employed by one ICB, this job description refers to 'the 'ICB', but your role may cover both ICB organisations, and / or geographical areas.

Equality and Diversity

The ICB is committed to providing services and employment to a community with an increasing variety of backgrounds. To do this effectively it is essential that we promote equality and embrace diversity and treat everyone with dignity and respect. This includes a focus on building a just culture