Front End Developer - Outside IR35

Overview

An exciting opportunity has arisen for a hands-on Front End Lead / Interim Tech Lead to join a growing product engineering team and lead the development of a next-generation SaaS platform built on Microsoft Azure.

This role is ideal for a senior engineer who thrives in a fast-paced environment, enjoys building products from the ground up, and wants to remain deeply involved in coding while leading a small team. You'll be responsible for defining front-end engineering standards, implementing AI-assisted development practices, and driving delivery of a modern React-based application.

Initially offered as a day-rate contract, there is a genuine intention to transition the successful candidate into a permanent Tech Lead position as the engineering function expands.

The Role

As Front End Lead, you will take ownership of the front-end architecture and delivery of a new React/TypeScript application, working closely with Product, Platform and Data teams.

This is a highly technical leadership position where you will:

• Lead development of a greenfield React/TypeScript front end.
• Remain hands-on in the codebase on a daily basis.
• Line manage and mentor a small front-end engineering team.
• Define and implement engineering best practices.
• Drive AI-assisted software development across the team.
• Establish scalable delivery processes, CI/CD pipelines and quality standards.
• Collaborate with architects and back-end teams to ensure contract-first API integration.

Key Responsibilities

Technical Leadership

• Lead the design, architecture and delivery of a modern React/TypeScript application.
• Act as the technical pace-setter for the front-end team through hands-on coding and code reviews.
• Own front-end API contracts and work closely with back-end engineers to maintain contract-first delivery.
• Build and maintain a scalable component library, design system and application framework.
• Establish engineering standards covering code quality, testing, accessibility, security and performance.

AI-Driven Engineering

• Define and champion AI-assisted development practices.
• Evaluate and implement tooling for:
  • Code generation
  • Agentic development workflows
  • Automated testing
  • Code review support
• Establish governance and guardrails around AI usage.
• Measure and demonstrate improvements in engineering productivity and delivery outcomes.

Delivery & Team Management

• Lead a co-located mobilisation period before transitioning to a hybrid working environment.
• Mentor, coach and line manage front-end engineers.
• Drive continuous improvement through pairing, reviews and knowledge sharing.
• Establish clear ways of working, delivery metrics and quality measures.
• Work closely with Product and Architecture teams to deliver against the product roadmap.

Security & Governance

• Ensure security remains a core part of the development lifecycle.
• Support implementation of secure authentication and authorisation using Microsoft Entra ID / MSAL.
• Contribute to customer security assurance activities and secure coding practices.
• Maintain eligibility for work within security-conscious environments.

Essential Experience

• 8+ years' experience in software engineering.
• Strong commercial experience with:
  • TypeScript
  • React
  • Modern front-end architecture and tooling
• Proven experience leading small engineering teams while remaining hands-on.
• Experience delivering SaaS products and greenfield applications.
• Strong API-first / contract-first development experience.
• Deep understanding of:
  • Automated testing strategies
  • CI/CD pipelines
  • Code quality tooling
  • Engineering governance
• Demonstrable experience implementing AI-assisted software development practices within production environments.
• Eligibility for UK Security Check (SC) clearance.

Desirable Experience

• Microsoft Azure.
• Microsoft Entra ID / MSAL authentication.
• Data-rich dashboard and analytics products.
• Storybook and design system development.
• Mantine UI framework.
• Defence, regulated industries, logistics or supply chain environments.
• Current SC clearance.
• Experience introducing emerging AI development tooling and agentic workflows.
• Previous contract roles that have transitioned into permanent leadership positions.

Working Arrangements

• Initially based on-site in Bristol for a collaborative mobilisation period.
• Hybrid working model thereafter.
• 40-hour working week with flexibility based on project and business requirements.
• Initial contract engagement of approximately three months with a clear route to a permanent leadership position for the right individual.

Why Join?

• Build a market-leading SaaS product from the ground up.
• Shape engineering culture, standards and ways of working.
• Lead adoption of cutting-edge AI development practices.
• Work within a growing technology team where your influence will directly impact product success.
• Opportunity to move into a long-term permanent Technical Leadership role.