Backend Engineer

Salary: £40,000 - £50,000

Location: We’re looking for someone based in the UK to help us better support our clients and collaborate closely with our wider team. This is a remote role, so you can work from wherever you feel most comfortable.

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At Substrakt, a UK based company with Global impact, we help arts and cultural organisations create exceptional digital experiences and we’re looking for a Backend Engineer to help us do just that.

As part of our Engineering team, you'll build robust, high-quality backend solutions that power our clients’ websites and digital products. From new website builds and custom integrations to performance optimisations and security enhancements, you’ll play a vital role in delivering outstanding products and services.

Substrakt is an equal opportunities employer. We believe that diversity of thought and experience makes us stronger, and we actively encourage applications from people of all backgrounds, identities, and abilities. Read more about our approach to inclusive recruitment.

What you'll do:

• Create exceptional backend solutions: Work on a range of projects across our client base including new builds, updates to existing websites, API integrations, infrastructure configurations, and other server-side tasks. You’ll work with modern technologies such as PHP, WordPress, MySQL, SQL, Python, Wagtail, Heroku and AWS (S3, CloudFront, RDS) - always with performance, security, and scalability in mind.
• Ensure quality and performance: Write clean, efficient, and secure code following best practices. You’ll test thoroughly, debug issues, and optimise performance to ensure reliable and seamless user experiences. You’ll also contribute to code reviews and help maintain our high technical standards.
• Collaborate and contribute: Work closely with frontend engineers, designers, and client-facing roles to ensure smooth delivery. You’ll communicate directly with clients when needed to explain technical decisions, and support Producers and Support & Solutions Managers in scoping and technical planning.
• Own your work: Take responsibility for the technical quality of your solutions, contribute to internal best practices, and help shape the future of our backend engineering processes. You’ll participate in solution reviews, submit and conduct code reviews, maintain technical documentation, and support continuous improvement.

What you'll bring:

• Strong experience in backend development using modern frameworks and tools (e.g., PHP, Python, WordPress, Wagtail, Django)
• Familiarity with relational databases (MySQL) and cloud infrastructure (Heroku, AWS, Cloudflare)
• Understanding of performance optimisation, secure coding practices, and scalable system design
• Enthusiasm for working collaboratively within a multidisciplinary team
• A friendly and helpful approach to communicating directly with clients
• Initiative, problem-solving mindset, and a drive to deliver high-quality work
• Openness to learn, share knowledge, and support others

Why Substrakt?

We’re a purpose-driven team, who are B-corp accredited, that values creativity, openness, and continual improvement. We believe in creating work we’re proud of and supporting each other to grow along the way. You’ll have the chance to work with some of the most inspiring arts and cultural organisations, contributing to meaningful projects that make a real impact.

• We operate a flexible, hybrid working model that supports autonomy and work-life balance.
• We have enhanced time off policies too with a focus on parents and carers, vacation days (you’ll get 25 days, plus bank holidays and you’ll never work a birthday again - because we give you that off)
• We offer NHS cashback scheme to support healthcare costs and a monthly wellbeing allowance of £50 to spend on whatever makes you feel good (whether that be a gym membership, a meal out, or a treatment of some kind)
• Everyone gets 6 days per year to focus on their own professional development, and a £500 budget to go along with that too.
• We invest heavily in communication and connection through weekly mailers, an intentional meeting cadence and internal awards. We also organise and cover the cost of bi-annual team gatherings to museums, art galleries and theatres.
• Not all benefits come in the form of traditional ‘perks’. At Substrakt, we place a strong emphasis on building the right team structure and workflows, so everyone knows what they’re accountable for and can focus on doing their best work.
• All team members have the opportunity to participate in our steering groups which aren’t just ‘nice to haves’ - they help everyone stay curious and influence the way Substrakt approaches things like Equality, Diversity and Inclusion, Internal Culture, Accessibility, AI, and Sustainability

If this sounds like you, and you like the sound of us, we’d love to hear from you.