Andrew Thwaites
Staines,Surrey
Summary
Experienced PHP Developer with over 10 years in creating scalable web applications and APIs across diverse sectors, including insurance and healthcare. Skilled in PHP 8, MVC frameworks, and RESTful services, with a focus on modernising legacy systems and integrating third-party platforms for secure solutions. Contributed to agile teams throughout the software development lifecycle.
Overview
13
13
years of professional experience
Work History
PHP Developer
AllClear Travel Insurance
12.2022 - 02.2026
- Developed and maintained backend services and business-critical functionality with PHP 8, MySQL, and DB2 for large-scale travel insurance platform, enhancing system reliability and performance.
- Designed, developed and supported REST and SOAP API integrations with internal and third-party systems, enabling seamless exchange of customer, policy and quotation data.
- Designed and implemented an OAuth-secured API that consolidated customer quote and policy information into a single service consumed by a Zendesk-integrated agent support application.
- Developed and maintained automated unit testing frameworks using PHPUnit, improving code quality and reducing regression risk across the customer journey.
- Designed and implemented comprehensive end-to-end automated testing suites using Cypress covering AllClear, InsureandGo and associated white-label brands.
- Contributed to development of customer service chatbot solution integrating Zendesk and secure two-factor authentication, improving customer interaction efficiency.
- Delivered seamless integrations with external providers including HEALIX medical screening services and telephony platforms, facilitating comprehensive service offerings.
- Worked within Agile delivery teams to support the ongoing enhancement, maintenance and optimisation of customer-facing insurance platforms.
- Leading travel insurance provider serving UK and international customers through multiple direct and white-label brands
PHP Developer
01.2021 - 11.2022
- Provided PHP development, maintenance and enhancement services for web-based business applications, improving performance and user engagement.
- Delivered targeted development and support assignments for clients, including National Foundation for Educational Research (NFER), enhancing functionality and user experience.
- Executed short-term contracts for diverse clients, ensuring tailored PHP solutions and meeting project specifications.
- Worked closely with stakeholders to analyse requirements, resolve technical issues and implement functional improvements.
- Contributed across the full software development lifecycle including development, testing, deployment and support.
PHP Developer
Information Edge
02.2017 - 07.2020
- Sole developer responsible for the design, development, maintenance and support of the DentalEdge multi-tenant SaaS platform.
- Delivered frontend and backend functionality across the full application lifecycle, including requirements analysis, development, testing and deployment.
- Developed responsive web interfaces with HTML5, CSS3, Bootstrap, JavaScript and jQuery, enhancing user experience across desktop and mobile platforms.
- Designed and implemented new functionality supporting multi-site dental practices, compliance management and Care Quality Commission (CQC) inspection processes.
- Developed configurable questionnaire and register management tools, enabling administrative users to create and manage compliance workflows.
- Created management dashboards and automated reporting solutions, improving operational visibility and communication for stakeholders.
- Delivered enhancements and defect resolutions, generating complex Excel-based business reports to support franchise operations.
- Worked within an international development team supporting a large-scale cloud-hosted business intelligence platform for the food and restaurant sector.
- Healthcare SaaS / Business Intelligence
PHP Developer
Mikkom Ltd
02.2015 - 01.2017
- Designed and implemented RESTful APIs supporting appointment scheduling and integration with external healthcare systems.
- Enhanced PHP applications and developed new functionality for customer-facing and administrative platforms, improving user experience and operational efficiency.
- Developed healthcare appointment booking solutions for NHS trusts, clinics, and healthcare providers, streamlining patient access to services.
- Delivered booking platform integrations for BUPA and other healthcare organisations, facilitating seamless data exchange between systems.
- Worked across the full software development lifecycle including analysis, development, testing and production support.
- Healthcare Technology Sector
PHP Developer
Nouveau Solutions
04.2013 - 01.2015
- Designed and developed a bespoke MVC framework using object-oriented PHP to support a multi-tenant ticketing and event management solution.
- Developed core customer-facing functionality including account management, event listings, seat-plan booking, merchandise sales, bundled products and checkout processes.
- Implemented integrations with third-party payment providers including SagePay and OneWorld, ensuring secure online transactions and streamlined payment processing.
- Developed new customer registration, authentication and gift card redemption functionality, improving user experience and supporting additional revenue streams.
- Led frontend and mid-tier development activities across multiple ticketing, leisure and e-commerce platforms.
- Architected and implemented integrations with SOAP-based web services, enabling the platform to consume and synchronise data from external systems.
- Managed maintenance, enhancement and refactoring of large-scale ticketing and e-commerce platform, improving system stability and performance.
- Collaborated with business stakeholders throughout software development lifecycle, facilitating solution design, change requests, documentation, testing and end-user training.
- Leisure, Events & Ticketing Sector
Education
BSc Software Engineering (Hons) - Software Engineering
The Nottingham Trent University
NottinghamHNC Computer - Distinction
Lancaster & Morecambe College
Skills
- PHP 8
- PHP programming
- Laravel
- CodeIgniter
- REST
- SOAP
- OAuth
- API integration
- Third-party integrations
- MySQL
- DB2
- SQL
- Version control
- Git
- GIT
- Linux & Bash
- Visual Studio Code
- JavaScript & JQuery
- HTML5
- CSS3
- AJAX
- Microservices
- PHPUnit
- Cypress
- Quality assurance
- Unit testing
- TDD
- Agile development
- Agile Scrum
- Software architecture
- Object-Oriented Design
- SOLID
- Code Reviews
- Refactoring
- Secure Dev Practices
- PSR Standards
- Technical documentation
- Problem solving
- Stakeholder collaboration
- Jira
- SonarQube
- Visual Studio Code
- Python
- JAVA
- PHP frameworks knowledge
- Code refactoring
- HTML
- Code refactoring
Accomplishments
- Designed and developed OAuth-secured REST APIs that consolidated customer quote and policy information into a Zendesk-integrated solution, improving customer service agent access to policy data and supporting chatbot functionality.
- Developed and maintained automated testing frameworks using PHPUnit and Cypress, increasing test coverage across multiple insurance brands and reducing regression risk within critical customer journeys.
- Delivered complex integrations with third-party platforms including healthcare providers, telephony systems, payment gateways, CRM platforms and external REST/SOAP web services across insurance, healthcare and e-commerce sectors.
- Served as lead and sole developer on multi-tenant SaaS business applications, delivering end-to-end functionality covering architecture, development, database design, testing, reporting and ongoing platform enhancement.
- Successfully refactored and modernised legacy PHP applications, improving maintainability, scalability and performance across enterprise web platforms supporting thousands of users.
- Contributed to the development of business-critical systems within insurance, healthcare, NHS, hospitality, leisure and e-commerce sectors, delivering secure and scalable solutions using PHP, Laravel, CodeIgniter, MySQL and modern web technologies.
Custom
PHP 8, Python, C / C++, JAVA, REST, SOAP, OAuth, Third-party integrations, Git, Jira, Linux & Bash, Visual Studio Code, Laravel, CodeIgniter, Micro-services, TypeScript, PHPUnit, Cypress, SonarQube, TDD, HTML5, CSS3, JavaScript & JQuery, AJAX, MySQL, DB2, SQL, Agile Scrum, Object-Oriented Design, SOLID, SSADM, Code Reviews, Refactoring, Secure Dev Practices, PSR Standards
Timeline
PHP Developer
AllClear Travel Insurance
12.2022 - 02.2026
PHP Developer
01.2021 - 11.2022
PHP Developer
Information Edge
02.2017 - 07.2020
PHP Developer
Mikkom Ltd
02.2015 - 01.2017
PHP Developer
Nouveau Solutions
04.2013 - 01.2015
BSc Software Engineering (Hons) - Software Engineering
The Nottingham Trent University
HNC Computer - Distinction
Lancaster & Morecambe College