Principal Data Scientist, City of Westminster

Principal Data Scientist The closing date is 03 June 2026 Main Duties of the Job In this role, you will act as a senior technical authority, shaping and assuring complex analytical work that informs decision‑making across health systems, research and innovation partners. You will lead the development of analytical and data engineering standards, support the evolution of ICHP’s RWE offer, and provide hands‑on technical input to priority and high‑risk projects. For example, large‑scale linkageof NHS data with non‑healthcare resources (e.g. HMRC or Department for Education datasets) and the development or evaluation of machine‑learning models intended to inform clinical or operational decision‑making. These projects require advanced governance, reproducibility, explainability and senior technical assurance to ensure defensible, regulator‑ready outputs.This is a specialist role without formal line‑management responsibility, operating through expertise, credibility and collaboration. You will work closely with the Associate Director of Strategy&Insights and the Senior Quantitative Insights Manager (RWE), influencing how real‑world data is used safely, rigorously and effectively to improve population health. Job Responsibilities Provide senior technical oversight and quality assurance across complex or high‑risk analytical projects, acting as final technical reviewer where required.Lead the development and continuous improvement of ICHP’s real‑world evidence standards, including analytical pipelines, data engineering, reproducibility and QA/QC. Provide hands‑on technical input to priority projects, advising on feasibility, data preparation, linkage approaches, and reproducible delivery.Ensure all analytical work complies with Five Safes principles, governance and disclosure control requirements. Act as a visible technical leader, sharing best practice, supporting capability building and contributing to a culture of continuous improvement. Person Specification– ExperienceSignificant hands‑on experience leading and delivering complex analytical or data science work. Advanced practical experience in either R or Python, with working knowledge of the other (sufficient to review, critique and assure code). Experience of designing/building reproducible analytical pipelines using version control (e.g. Git), with defined QA/QC and documentation standards.Experience working with large administrative or longitudinal datasets (e.g. SQL). Experience as a senior technical reviewer or assurance point for high‑risk or high‑profile analytical outputs. Disclosure and Barring Service Check This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service (formerly knownas CRB) to check for any previous criminal convictions.Chelsea and Westminster Hospital NHS Foundation Trust£88,250 to £100,355 a year / Per Annum Pro‑ratia #J-18808-Ljbffr