Test Analyst at Office for National Statistics, Remote/Newport, 6 Months, £Contract Rate

The Office for National Statistics (ONS) is the UK's largest producer of official statistics, covering a range of key economic, social and demographic topics. These include measuring changes in the value of the UK economy, estimating the size, geographic distribution and characteristics of the population, and providing indicators of price inflation, employment, earnings, crime and migration.

This role is required for The Transformed Labour Force Survey (TLFS) - the largest transformation programme that the ONS has enacted in over 50 years, which is critical to delivering quality data to key stakeholders, shaping economic policy now and in the future.

The TLFS collects data from households and individuals across the United Kingdom (UK) and aims to provide high quality data that underpins core National Statistics and the wider UK statistical system.

The TLFS is designed to provide data sets for internal ONS and external users, such as the Bank of England (BoE), His Majesty's Treasury (HMT), His Majesty's Revenue and Customs (HMRC) and the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP). The data collected will paint a picture of life in the UK, supporting research, policy development and decision making across the wider public and private sectors, academia, and the general public.

The Programme requires a skilled and experienced Test Analyst to support in the planning, design, execution and reporting of testing across a number of Projects. The testing is primarily manual, with an opportunity to increase automation underway.

As a Test Analyst your main responsibilities will be:

• Listen to and interpret the needs of technical and non-technical stakeholders
• Influence and guide the use of appropriate test types and techniques to mitigate risk early
• Design, build, maintain and execute tests that align to user needs and requirements
• Manage and escalate dependencies, defects and risks
• Contribute to mitigation and contingency plans across teams
• Use defect patterns and trends to make recommendations on testing and quality approaches, with support
• Manage stakeholder expectations and communications during defect resolution, with support
• Lead work to determine which functional and non-functional quality characteristics add value
• Determine and escalate as appropriate, if an approach needs to change based on effort and risk
• Ensure test needs are implemented early
• Use multiple techniques to analyse complex information to identify risks
• Contribute to full team ownership of quality testing activities, encouraging early engagement
• Follow guidance to design, build and maintain tests that align to user needs and requirements

Essential:

• An active SC Clearance is an essential requirement for this role, as a minimum you must be willing & eligible to undergo checks. (Please note, due to the exceptional requirements of this position (short-term nature of this role and speed at which we require a postholder in situ) preference may be given to candidates who meet all of the essential criteria and hold active security clearance.) 
• Proven Test Analyst experience in complex IT programmes/projects.
• Strong manual testing experience across planning, execution, defect management, and reporting.
• Experience with test and defect management tools.
• Excellent stakeholder management and communication skills.
• Strong analytical and risk-based testing capabilities.

Desirable:

• Public Sector experience.
• Jira experience.

Please be aware that this role can only be worked within the UK and not Overseas.

Disability Confident 

As a member of the Disability Confident Scheme, ONS guarantees to interview all candidates who have a disability and who meet all the essential criteria for the vacancy. In cases where we have a high volume of candidates who have a disability who meet all the essential criteria, we will interview the best candidates from within that group.

This scheme encourages candidates with a disability and/or neurodivergence to apply. In exceptional circumstances, we may also need to apply the desirable criteria in our shortlisting process which may include holding active security clearance.

Armed Forces Covenant 

ONS guarantees to interview veterans or spouses / partners of military personnel who meet all the essential criteria for the vacancy. In cases where we have a high volume of ex-military candidates / military spouses or partners, who meet all of the essential criteria, we will interview the best candidates from within that group. In exceptional circumstances, we may also need to apply the desirable criteria in our shortlisting process which may include holding active security clearance.

In applying for this role, you acknowledge the following this role falls in scope of the Off Payroll Working in the Public Sector legislation. Any rates of payment quoted will reflect the gross rate per day for the assignment and will be subject to appropriate taxes and statutory costs. As such the payment to the intermediary and your income resulting from this contract will be different.