Custom Software Development
Buying beats building for most needs. But every organisation has processes specific enough that no product fits, and those processes are usually the ones closest to what makes the organisation distinctive.
We build those systems to be maintainable by someone else: documented, tested, using boring proven technology, with the handover treated as a deliverable rather than an afterthought.
Platforms we typically deliver this on
Scope of the service
Web application development
Enterprise web applications on established stacks — .NET, Java, Python, Node and modern JavaScript frameworks.
API and integration services
Well-documented APIs and integration services with versioning, authentication and rate control designed in.
Workflow and case management
Configurable workflow, approval routing and case handling for processes that no packaged product matches.
Portal development
Secure staff, citizen, student and partner portals with identity integration.
Modernising legacy applications
Incremental replacement of ageing systems, keeping them running while the new one is built around them.
Accessibility and standards
WCAG 2.1 AA compliance and security standards appropriate to public-sector and regulated deployment.
Where this is used
Representative engagements, described at the level our clients permit. Sector and shape are accurate; identifying detail is withheld.
A grant administration system
Grant intake, assessment and reporting ran on spreadsheets and email. We built a system with configurable assessment criteria, conflict-of-interest handling and a complete audit trail.
Outcome — A defensible, auditable process replacing an untraceable one.
A referral tracking platform
Referrals were tracked in several disconnected systems with no view of total wait. We built a platform integrating the sources with a single operational view.
Outcome — One view of the whole pathway rather than each segment separately.
Replacing a legacy application in place
A critical system on an unsupported framework could not be taken offline. We replaced it feature by feature behind a routing layer until the original could be retired.
Outcome — Replacement completed without a big-bang cutover.
Before you get in touch
Should we build or buy?
Buy unless the process is genuinely distinctive. We are willing to advise against a build, and regularly do.
Who owns the code?
You do, in your repositories, from the first commit.
What happens after launch?
Handover with documentation and runbooks, then either your team maintains it or we do under application managed services. Both are fine; the code is written to be handed over either way.
Often engaged alongside this
Custom AI & Generative AI Development
We build the AI systems that do not exist off the shelf: document processing against your forms, classifiers trained on your taxonomy, copilots that read your systems of record.
Read moreEnterprise ApplicationsDigital Experience & Commerce
Drupal and Acquia platforms, commerce, mobile and UX — including the accessibility and performance obligations that come with serving the public.
Read moreEnterprise ApplicationsQuality Engineering & Testing
Test automation, performance and accessibility testing — plus the evaluation methods AI systems need, where assertions no longer work.
Read moreStart with three weeks and a straight answer
The AI Readiness Assessment is fixed in scope, fixed in price and produces four deliverables you own — whether or not you continue with us.