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+# Software Lifecycle Management Policy
+
+## Purpose
+
+This policy ensures that all software systems are designed, developed, deployed, maintained, and retired in a consistent, secure, and efficient manner aligned with organizational standards.
+
+## Scope
+
+This policy applies to all software engineers, contractors, and teams involved in developing or maintaining internal or customer-facing software.
+
+## Policy Requirements
+
+### Planning & Design
+
+- All new software must include documented requirements, architecture diagrams, threat models and risk assessments.
+- Designs must consider security (ref. [POL201 - Secure by Design](https://ukho.sharepoint.com/sites/docstore-prd/_layouts/15/Doc.aspx?sourcedoc=%7BD068DDEC-D0A6-49A6-AA88-B16D4A3B6A30%7D&file=POL201.docx&action=default&mobileredirect=true&DefaultItemOpen=1)), scalability, observability, and maintainability.
+- Designs should be peer reviewed to identify any sharable components.
+- [Naming conventions](../NamingConventions/NamingConventions.md) must be defined and followed consistently.
+
+### Development
+
+- Code must be version-controlled using approved [source control](../SourceControl/SourceControl.md) solutions.
+- Code must follow established [coding standards](../CodingStandards/CodingStandards.md).
+- Code must be peer reviewed in line with [code review policy](../CodeReview/CodeReviewPolicy.md).
+- [Secure Development](../SecureDevelopment/SecureDevelopment.md) practices must be followed to mitigate vulnerabilities.
+- Automated testing (unit, integration, and security checks) must be implemented before merge.
+
+### Testing & Quality Assurance
+
+- Testing must include unit, integration, system, and security tests.
+- Testing should be automated where possible, following the [test strategy](../QualityAssurance/TestStrategy.md).
+- Test coverage and results should be documented and reviewed.
+- Performance and load testing should be conducted for critical systems.
+
+### Deployment & Release Management
+
+- Deployment pipelines must comply with the [pipeline policy](../Pipelines/Baseline_Policy.md).
+- Rollback procedures must be defined and tested.
+- [IaC (Infrastructure as Code) practices](../InfrastructureAsCode/terraform.md) should be used for environment provisioning.
+
+### Operational Maintenance
+
+- Teams must monitor system performance, security alerts, and error logs as per the [observability policy](../observability/observability_policy.md).
+- Critical vulnerabilities must be remediated within defined SLAs (ref. [POL218 - Patch Management Policy](https://ukho.sharepoint.com/sites/docstore-prd/_layouts/15/Doc.aspx?sourcedoc=%7B82EA818D-00AA-44EE-B9A1-E901879DE72E%7D&file=POL218.docx&action=default&mobileredirect=true&DefaultItemOpen=1)).
+- [Technical debt](../TechnicalDebt/TechnicalDebt.md) should be periodically reviewed and addressed.
+- Disaster recovery procedures must be defined and tested.
+
+### Documentation
+
+- Architecture, APIs, deployment steps, and dependencies must be kept up-to-date.
+- [System documentation](../SystemDocumentation/SystemDocumentation.md) must be comprehensive and accessible.
+
+### Decommissioning
+
+- Software approaching End-of-Life (EOL) must have a documented migration or decommission plan. For more information, refer to the [decommission guidance](../Lifecycle/DecommissionGuidance.md).
+- Data retention and disposal must comply with organizational and regulatory requirements.