Senior PHP Developer

FRESH.; Greater London; Hybrid; GBP 70,000 - 110,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Hybrid working model

London office

Job summary

FRESH is seeking a Senior PHP Engineer to join its engineering team as it scales. You will focus on backend development, building robust APIs with Laravel and working with MongoDB and Elasticsearch to support enterprise clients.

The role offers ownership of the product scope, opportunity to influence architecture, and a hands-on, collaborative environment in a fast-growing SaaS business.

Qualifications

• 5+ years of commercial PHP experience, ideally with Laravel.
• Strong hands-on MongoDB experience.
• Solid Elasticsearch expertise, including search optimization and reporting.
• Experience building robust APIs powering user-friendly interfaces.
• Thrives in fast-growing startup or scale-up environments.
• Proactive, self-starting mindset with strong problem-solving skills.
• Excellent communication and collaboration abilities.

Responsibilities

• Design, develop, and maintain backend services and APIs using PHP (Laravel).
• Work with MongoDB to design data models.
• Leverage Elasticsearch for search functionality and data aggregation.
• Collaborate with engineers, product, and customer-facing teams.
• Own projects from concept through production.

Skills

PHP

Laravel

MongoDB

Elasticsearch

APIs

Startup experience

Communication

Tools

Elasticsearch

Job description

FRESH has partnered with a fast-growing, SaaS company who are looking for a Senior PHP Engineer to join its engineering team at an exciting stage of growth. The business builds modern, cloud-based software used by enterprise clients across the global hospitality, spa, and wellness industry.

Following significant recent funding, this role offers the opportunity to have a real impact on product direction, technical architecture, and scalability as the company continues to expand.

The Senior Backend Engineer will focus primarily on backend development, designing and building robust, scalable APIs using PHP (Laravel). The role involves close collaboration with engineering, product, and customer-facing teams to deliver high-quality features that directly support customers’ operational needs.

This is a hands-on role suited to someone who enjoys ownership, problem-solving, and contributing ideas throughout the full product development lifecycle.

Key Responsibilities

• Design, develop, and maintain backend services and APIs using PHP (Laravel)
• Work with MongoDB to design, build, and manage data models
• Use Elasticsearch for search functionality, reporting, and data aggregation
• Collaborate closely with engineers, product managers, and customer experience teams
• Take ownership of projects from initial concept through to production

Requirements

• 5+ years of commercial experience with PHP, ideally using Laravel
• Strong hands-on experience with MongoDB
• Solid experience with Elasticsearch, including search optimisation and reporting
• Experience building APIs that power clean, user-friendly interfaces
• Comfortable working in a fast-growing startup or scale-up environment
• A proactive, self-starting mindset with a passion for learning and problem-solving
• Strong communication skills and a collaborative approach to work

What’s on Offer

• Opportunity to join a high-growth, well-funded technology business at a pivotal stage
• Hybrid working model (London-based office)