Senior Software Engineer - Wordpress

News Corp UK & Ireland Limited; Greater London; Hybrid; GBP 70,000 - 110,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Private medical insurance

25 days holiday

Pension scheme

LinkedIn Learning access

Job summary

The Sun, part of News UK, is seeking a Senior Software Engineer to drive the development of its WordPress-based content platform. You will enhance the editorial experience, build robust integrations, and ensure high performance for millions of readers.

You will develop WordPress themes/plugins, streamline newsroom workflows with Slack, implement SSO with Okta, and optimise caching and feeds while maintaining top-notch code quality.

Qualifications

• Expert proficiency in PHP and WordPress core/internals to build scalable enterprise solutions.
• Deep experience with Composer for dependency management, PHPUnit for testing, and Gutenberg block development.
• Proven track record of integrating third-party APIs (Slack, Okta, REST APIs).
• Knowledge of caching mechanisms (Varnish, CDN) and authentication protocols (SAML, SSO).
• Ability to work in a hybrid office environment with a focus on high-performance CMS platforms.

Responsibilities

• Develop and maintain complex WordPress themes and plugins for high-traffic sites, including The Sun.
• Build tools to streamline newsroom operations and integrations (Slack for publishing workflows, author attribution).
• Implement and manage secure authentication systems including SSO using Okta and SAML across editions.
• Optimise application performance with advanced caching strategies and custom MU-plugins for Cache-Control headers.
• Engineer and migrate syndication feeds (RSS for Google Newsstand, Tabloid integration).
• Maintain code quality with PHPUnit testing and dependency management via Composer.

Skills

PHP

WordPress core

Composer

PHPUnit

Gutenberg

REST APIs

Slack integration

Okta SSO

Caching strategies

SAML

Tools

Slack

Okta

SAML

Varnish

CDN

Job description

Job Description

Your Team:

The Sun is one of the UK’s strongest brands and, like all media organisations, is having to adapt rapidly to overcome the uncertainties of a fast-moving digital world. Our website The Sun is more than a newspaper. It is an instigator, an entertainer, a cultural reference point, a finger on the pulse, a daily relationship. We work to empower our engineers so that they feel ownership over the products to help drive them, and the standards they are built against, forwards and actively encourage feedback and ideas from within the team to do this.

Your Role:

We are looking for a Senior Software Engineer to drive the development of The Sun’s digital publishing platform. You will be a key part of the Sun Content team, enhancing the editorial experience, building robust integrations, and ensuring the high performance of our WordPress-based content management systems which serve millions of readers.

Day to day You Will

• Develop and maintain complex WordPress themes and plugins for high-traffic sites, including The Sun.

• Build tools to streamline newsroom operations, such as integrating Slack for publishing workflows and automated author attribution.

• Implement and manage secure authentication systems, including Single Sign-On (SSO) solutions using Okta and SAML across different digital editions.

• Optimise application performance through advanced caching strategies, creating custom MU-plugins to manage Cache-Control headers for CDNs and browsers.

• Engineer and migrate syndication feeds, such as custom RSS templates for Google Newsstand and Tabloid integration.

• Maintain exceptional code quality through PHPUnit testing, dependency management via Composer.

What we're looking for from you

• Primary Languages: Expert proficiency in PHP and WordPress core/internals to build scalable enterprise solutions.

• Frameworks & Tools: Deep experience with Composer for dependency management, PHPUnit for testing, and Gutenberg block development.

• Integrations: Proven track record of integrating third-party APIs (Slack, Okta, REST APIs).

• Infrastructure: Knowledge of caching mechanisms (Varnish, CDN), authentication protocols (SAML, SSO), and enterprise-grade architecture.

If you think you have what it takes but don’t tick every requirement on the list, we recognise that considering someone’s potential as well as their experience is a great way to hire. We want to hear from people who have a passion to learn and develop.

News UK is one of the leading media businesses in the UK and Ireland. Our newsbrands include The Times, The Sunday Times, The Sun, The Sun on Sunday and The TLS. Our national broadcast brands include talkSPORT, Times Radio and Virgin Radio UK, and we have market-leading local stations across Ireland. Our world-famous brands provide news, analysis, opinion and entertainment to almost 40 million people each month. Spanning print and pixel, audio and video, events and experiences, our multi-format brands are home to a plurality of opinion, representing the diverse communities we serve. Driven by passion, guided by principles and acting with purpose, we exist to promote a fair society, freedom of speech and a little bit of fun. Rethinking continually the business of storytelling, we represent, reflect and reach the nation, telling the stories that matter.

At News UK, we embrace a hybrid work model, currently requiring a minimum of three days per week in the office. This approach fosters collaboration, innovation, and team spirit within our workspace. Certain roles may necessitate additional in-office days; please discuss this with your recruiter for specific requirements.

Life at News

Driven by passion, guided by principles and acting with purpose. We represent, reflect and reach the nation, telling the stories that matter. We inform our audiences so that they can make decisions based on trusted information.

We represent, reflect and reach the nation, telling the stories that matter most. To ensure these stories resonate with as broad an audience as possible, it is essential that our organisation reflects the diversity of the people we reach. Whether through age, gender, ethnicity, disability, social class or sexuality, we are committed to representing the rich variety of voices that make up our society. And we champion a culture where everyone has the opportunity to contribute and thrive as we continue to innovate and drive long term sustainable growth. This is done through our Diversity Strategy.

At News UK, we take pride in our exceptional employee-led networks that bring together individuals with shared interests and create a vibrant sense of community. We believe our networks play a vital role in fostering a collaborative and supportive work culture at News UK. Groups that we support include the African & Caribbean Network, Parents and Carers, and LGBTQ+ group News Is Out, and the Apprentice Society.

Benefits

Some of our benefits include:

• Private medical insurance including coverage for pre-existing conditions

• Discounted gym memberships, free ClassPass at Home, weekly in person/ virtual exercise classes

• ‘Bikes for Work’ and ‘Electric Car’ scheme

• Up to 60% discount on Harper Collins books

• Maternity leave up to 18 weeks full basic salary & paternity leave up to 2 weeks

• Access to exclusive events and competitions with exciting brands such as talkSPORT, Virgin Radio UK & The Times. Weekly virtual panel chats with top journalists and celebrities

• Access to wellbeing benefits such as EAP, physio/massage and counselling

• A generous pension scheme with employer contributions of up to 5%

• Wide range of training available, plus full LinkedIn Learning access

• 25 days holiday, plus bank holidays and up to 4 volunteering days per year

We want to ensure that everyone has the opportunity to perform to their best when applying for a role. If you would like to receive any information in a different way or for us to do anything differently to support you to apply for any of our roles please contact us on [e-mail].