Senior PHP Web Developer

Role : Senior Software Developer

Division : Pearson Assessment Services

Location : Rotherham, Oxford, London or Manchester

Salary : £45 – 55k, plus on target bonus of 8%

About Pearson : Our purpose at Pearson is to help everyone achieve their potential through learning. At the heart of this is a commitment to sustainable practices and meaningful, measurable outcomes. We are the world’s leading learning company. Our ability to help people learn is built on our ability to grow with and adapt to a constantly evolving market. Our 20,000+ employees around the world in 70 countries in which we operate are dedicated to doing just that : creating the digital-first, accessible and sustainable learning resources that prepare tens of millions of people each year for a lifetime of learning

About Pearson Assessment Services : The Pearson Assessment Services (PAS) team provides assessment services to the UK and international assessment markets, supporting government education departments with project management, operational delivery and technical solutions. We are part of Pearson School Qualifications which supports the curriculum, qualifications and assessments for students in the UK and globally, delivering exams to over million students in over 80 countries annually and operating as a centre of excellence in qualifications and assessment.

About you

You’ll have significant prior relevant experience working on full stack development, developing solutions that provide real benefit to users, and ideally working in an Agile project delivery environment using Scrum or Kanban, although this is not essential.

Key Skills & Experience

Successful completion of software and data services projects, specifically with the use of the Laravel development framework on both front and backend services

Design and implementation of DB structures in MySQL

Creating technical specifications based on requirements given

Estimation and development following an Agile approach

Participation in regular peer review processes

Delivery of complex digital projects to tight deadlines

Working with a global team of developers

Assisting with architectural discussions and plans

Designing software systems for cloud-based architecture

Working with product owner and business analyst to refine and estimate requirements

Working with the project managers, product owners and operation team to ensure application are successfully delivered to production

Providing production support to application

Applying best practices for chosen development platform

Desirable Skills & Experience

Exposure to Agile development methodology.

Very strong experience with PHP and frameworks (Laravel), MySQL

Awareness of application architecture in cloud-based environments (AWS)

Understanding of key architectural components, such as caches and queues

Experience using Docker and containers

Proven track record of working in a business systems development project environment from beginning to end

Good communication skills both written and verbal

Travel may be required in support of projects

Strong knowledge of UI design

Experience in the education sector and assessment beneficial

Experience of designing large data, high traffic, scalable solutions

Experience of JavaScript and associated frameworks ( especially) highly beneficial

Job Location and Hours

The role is aligned to our Rotherham, London, Oxfordshire or Manchester offices in the UK, working a hour week.

All our roles are hybrid working; our current policy requires our team to visit their base office no more than once a week, and with the possibility of occasional business travel to other Pearson sites. Candidates must be a suitable commute from their base office as our office presence policy may change to require more frequent presence in 2024.

What to expect from Pearson

Did you know Pearson is one of the 10 most innovative education companies of 2022?

At Pearson, we add life to a lifetime of learning so everyone can realize the life they imagine. We do this by creating vibrant and enriching learning experiences designed for real-life impact. We are on a journey to be 100 percent digital to meet the changing needs of the global population by developing a new strategy with ambitious targets. To deliver on our strategic vision, we have five business divisions that are the foundation for the long-term growth of the company : Assessment & Qualifications, Virtual Learning, English Language Learning, Workforce Skills and Higher Education. Alongside these, we have our corporate divisions : Digital & Technology, Finance, Global Corporate Marketing & Communications, Human Resources, Legal, Strategy and Direct to Consumer. Learn more at

We value the power of an inclusive culture and also a strong sense of belonging. We promote a culture where differences are embraced, opportunities are accessible, consideration and respect are the norm and all individuals are supported in reaching their full potential. Through our talent, we believe that diversity, equity and inclusion make us a more innovative and vibrant place to work. People are at the center, and we are committed to building a workplace where talent can learn, grow and thrive.