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Agent guide: [/agents.md](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/agents.md). --- # Lead Full Stack Engineer - **Company:** OpenSourced - **Location:** Midlothian, UK - **Experience:** Expert - **Salary:** £65,000.0 - £75,000.0 - **Contract:** Permanent contract - **Skills:** JavaScript (Programming Language), PHP (Programming Language), Application Programming Interfaces (APIs), Artificial Intelligence, Static Program Analysis, Code Review, Database Queries, Github, Laravel, PostgreSQL, OAuth, OpenID, PHP Development, Systems Development Life Cycle, Role-Based Access Control, Redis, Mockito, Next.js, Screen Reader, Symfony, TypeScript, Web Content Accessibility Guidelines, Datadog, Network Routers, Tailwind, ReactJS, Phpunit, Cypress (Programming Language), Indexer, Backend, Git, Playwright, Sentry, Browser Testing, Front End Software Development, Software Coding, Amazon Simple Queue Service (SQS), Code Restructuring, Serverless Computing, Static Application Security Testing, Dynamic Application Security Testing - **Published:** September 3, 2026 - **Apply:** https://www.reed.co.uk/jobs/lead-full-stack-engineer/57305927 ## About the Role * 5+ years' commercial full stack development experience, backend and frontend * Track record of technical leadership - architecture decisions, mentoring, driving engineering standards * PHP 8.3+ (constructor property promotion, readonly properties, enums, strict types) * Laravel 11+ (or strong Symfony experience), InertiaJS or strong React * Pest or PHPUnit - feature, unit and browser testing * PostgreSQL - migrations, indexing, complex queries * Experience with queues and background jobs (SQS/Redis, idempotent job design, dead-letter handling) * NextJS 14+ (App Router), React 18+, TypeScript * Tailwind CSS, SWR or React Query * Accessibility experience - WCAG 2.2 AA, keyboard navigation, screen-reader testing * Strong Git workflow, comfortable in a regulated SDLC (code review, security sign-off, audit trails) * Clear written communication for technical documentation and stakeholder-facing decision records Desirable * Serverless Laravel hosting, AWS serverless stack experience * Managed NextJS hosting, application observability tooling (e.g. Sentry) * Cypress or Playwright, MSW for E2E mocking * RBAC and multi-tenant, team-scoped data patterns * GitHub Actions CI/CD, SAST/DAST tooling * Background in a regulated sector - gov-tech, fintech or healthtech * Prior experience leading or mentoring within an engineering team, This role sits within a regulated environment delivering services on behalf of a public sector body. Candidates must have the right to work in the UK and be willing to complete standard pre-employment background screening. Key Skills: Full Stack Engineer, Lead Engineer, Laravel, PHP, React, NextJS, TypeScript, InertiaJS, PostgreSQL, Tailwind CSS, Technical Lead, GovTech, Edinburgh Skills * Laravel (PHP Framework) * Leadership * PHP Development * React (JavaScript) * TypeScript ## Description A GovTech scale-up delivering a live licensing platform for the Scottish public sector is hiring a Lead Full Stack Engineer to take technical ownership across their Laravel, InertiaJS and NextJS stack. This is a hands-on technical leadership role - you'll be writing code, making architecture calls, and setting the standard for a small, senior engineering team, while reporting directly into the CTO. The Role You'll take ownership across the full stack: Laravel migrations and Eloquent models, InertiaJS admin interfaces, a NextJS citizen-facing portal, and an embeddable public register. You'll work from spec through to PR, security review, UAT and government release sign-off - and you'll be the technical reference point the rest of the team looks to. This is not a role hidden behind tickets. You'll be expected to make judgement calls, ask the right questions early, and hold the line on correctness and accessibility as much as delivery speed., * Own technical delivery of licensing workflows end-to-end, from architecture through to production * Lead integration work with government services (OAuth2/OIDC, PKCE-based identity verification, notification and payment platforms, Companies House, DVLA, address lookup APIs) * Set and maintain engineering standards across a strongly-typed Laravel codebase (high type coverage, static analysis, refactoring discipline) * Guide the team's approach to accessible React UI built against a government design system * Lead serverless cloud deployment and operational decision-making * Drive security design reviews, threat modelling and SAST/DAST/SCA remediation * Own the technical approach to onboarding new verticals on a config-driven platform * Shape and build AI-assisted features (form validation, document/eligibility checks, triage tooling) * Mentor engineers, review code and PRs, and act as a technical escalation point ## Related Videos - [How a Small Team Shrank a Microsoft Monorepo by 94%](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/videos/1236-how-a-small-team-shrank-a-microsoft-monorepo-by-94) - [Keeping applications secure by evolving OAuth 2.0 and OpenID Connect](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/videos/100152-keeping-applications-secure-by-evolving-oauth-2-0-and-openid-connect) - [Reducing LLM Calls with Vector Search Patterns - Raphael De Lio (Redis)](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/videos/1714-reducing-llm-calls-with-vector-search-patterns-raphael-de-lio-redis) - [Web development best practices in 2021](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/videos/280-web-development-best-practices-in-2021) - [Git for Code Reviews](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/videos/429-git-for-code-reviews) - [WeAreDevelopers LIVE – AI, Freelancing, Keeping Up with Tech and More](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/videos/1786-wearedevelopers-live-ai-freelancing-keeping-up-with-tech-and-more) ## Related Articles - [Fullstack Developer Salary UK](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/magazine/251-fullstack-developer-salary-uk) - [Fully Remote Software Engineer Jobs](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/magazine/447-fully-remote-software-engineer-jobs) - [Frontend Developer Salary in The UK](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/magazine/233-frontend-developer-salary-in-the-uk) - [Software Engineer Salary London](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/magazine/252-software-engineer-salary-london) - [Dev Digest 120 - Apple and peers](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/magazine/455-dev-digest-120-apple-and-peers) - [Find a Developer Job: 12 Best Job Sites For Developers](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/magazine/165-find-a-developer-job-12-best-job-sites-for-developers)