Tim Rabbetts

(Contact me at: timrabbetts@gmail.com)

Full Stack Developer - PHP | Drupal | AI Integration | DevOps

Profile

Senior full-stack developer with 15+ years of experience delivering scalable digital platforms for government, finance, and healthcare. Specialising in PHP (8.3), Drupal (7-11), and DevOps on Linux, with hands-on delivery of AI-powered workflows, complex APIs, and secure systems.

Known for deep technical capability, solid project leadership, and consistent contract extensions. Adept at integrating AI tooling, architecting enterprise platforms, and owning code quality from concept to deployment. Equally comfortable hands-on or mentoring distributed teams.

Notable achievements include AI chatbot and automation for North Somerset Council, national COVID travel system, scalable Open Banking portal at Santander, and a live Drupal platform for global student enrolment at Kaplan.

Core Skills

Languages & Platforms

PHP 8.3, SQL, JavaScript, Python, Bash, Node.js

AI/ML Integration

Python chatbot dev, custom N8N workflows, image gen APIs

CMS

Drupal 7-11 (custom modules, config API, theme dev, caching)

API Development

REST, GraphQL, SOAP, 3rd-party integrations

DevOps & Hosting

Linux, Docker, NGINX, AWS, GCP, LEMP stack

Tooling

Git Actions, Azure Pipelines, Jenkins, Bitbucket Pipelines

Security & Testing

OWASP, PHPUnit, TDD, Simpletest, Cypress

Web Development Experience

Highly proficient in advanced object-oriented design patterns, with deep expertise in applying SOLID principles to create robust, maintainable architectures
Expert in PSR standards and scalable backend architecture
Extensive API creation and third-party integrations (REST, GraphQL, SOAP)
Secure coding practices with full OWASP compliance
Solid Drupal 10+ experience (custom modules, state/config API, services)
Skilled in Drupal theming with Twig and Tailwind CSS
CI/CD pipelines and infrastructure-as-code across multiple clients
Log monitoring and error tracking via ELK stack

Drupal-Specific Skills

Full mastery of Drupal module development, themeing, config API
Experience with event subscribers, custom services, caching strategies
Strong Drush scripting and deployment automation
Performance tuning using Memcached, Varnish
Unit and functional testing (PHPUnit, Simpletest), TDD practices

Professional Experience

Agilisys / Principle Consultant (perm)

Nov 2020 - Present, Remote

Spearheaded the development of a government COVID-19 travel tracking platform, utilizing cutting-edge Drupal 9 and PHP 8 frameworks, showcasing strong leadership in object-oriented design.

Engineered a sophisticated multi-step form system with a custom OO framework paired with a React/TypeScript and Ionic headless front-end, delivering exceptional project outcomes.

Championed agile methodologies and optimal deployments via Azure pipelines, ensuring seamless, high-quality deliverables under tight deadlines.

Fostered a high-performance remote work environment, consistently receiving excellent feedback for both team collaboration and project execution.

Santander / Lead Drupal Developer (contract)

Nov 2018 - Nov 2020

Designed and deployed the Santander Open Banking Developer Portal, demonstrating strong technical leadership and innovative problem-solving skills.

Developed a Docker-based solution for multiple environments, optimizing legacy systems and integrating cutting-edge Open Banking APIs.

Maintained and enhanced a Drupal 7 platform, consistently delivering solutions that met and exceeded project goals.

Catch Digital / Lead Drupal Developer (contract)

Feb 2018 - Oct 2018

Led the migration and development of a new Drupal 8 platform for a major digital hub, setting standards for architectural excellence and comprehensive documentation.

Orchestrated custom integrations, including Auth0 for single sign-on and bespoke payment solutions, achieving outstanding results in project delivery and client satisfaction.

Attraction Tickets Direct / Lead Drupal Developer (contract)

Aug 2016 - Jan 2018

Architected a Drupal 8 headless RESTful API for a gateway booking system, significantly reducing development time while maintaining system stability and reliability.

Managed a full Docker infrastructure and implemented an ELK stack, enhancing system operations and monitoring.

Kaplan International / Lead Drupal Developer (contract)

Jan 2016 - Aug 2016

Drove major frontend and backend enhancements for a global multilingual Drupal 7 site, improving performance and user experience.

Developed custom migration tools and integrated new features seamlessly into the existing infrastructure, demonstrating exceptional technical and leadership skills.

Full Fat Things / Lead Drupal Developer (contract)

May 2015 - Dec 2015

Developed and managed a Drupal-based document archive website, showcasing superior skills in responsive web design and user interface development.

Led feature development and codebase enhancements, maintaining high standards of code integrity and functionality.

Userly / Head of Web Development (perm)

Oct 2013 - May 2015

Brought in to rescue a delayed project; offered full-time Lead Developer role after contract.

Led and grew the development team while delivering complex Drupal solutions.

Designed and built Credit Benchmark, a greenfield platform for aggregating and anonymising credit risk data.

Managed the full project lifecycle, including client liaison, architecture, development, and deployment.

Built key features: high-speed node import system, interactive charts, and advanced data validation.

Education

University of Sussex

BSc Computer Science (2:2)
2004 - 2008

New College, Swindon

A-Levels: Computer Science, Physics, Geography
1996 - 1998

Hobbies & Interests

Purple belt in kickboxing
Carpentry - built furniture including beds, arcade machines, coffee tables
3D printing - hands-on hobby shared with my sons
Run a home lab of 7 servers - manage networking, storage, patching
Electronics projects with Raspberry Pi & Arduino
Basic piano skills

Testimonials

David Bishop - Head of Web - Agilisys

Tim has all of the qualities that you look for in a full stack Drupal developer. I hired Tim into the team when we were in need of an experienced senior Drupal Developer who could lead teams to the successful delivery of complex Drupal projects with multiple enterprise level integrations.

Tim is a capable programmer with a passion for getting the job done and is hugely responsible. Tim has been the lead role on some long running large programs of development, adapting to client needs and ensuring a high quality of output on every release.

One of my personal highlights of working with Tim has been our shared passion for inventing our own solutions to problems we find in the real world with Raspberry Pi's and IoT gadgets. Tim brings this creativity to the projects he lead which gives him great capacity as a Drupal architect. I would be delighted to work with Tim again in the future.

Marcin Pajdzik - Contractor - Cloud Solutions Architect

Tim is a professional Drupal/PHP developer who willingly accepts challenging assignments and offers to contribute whenever there is an opportunity. His superior and always up-to-date technical knowledge combined with excellent communication skills makes him an exceptional technical leader. Tim is reliable, innovative and result-driven. If you are looking for someone for your digital project, get in touch with Tim!

Jonathan Brothers - Head of Creative - Wonga

Tim is a great programmer and developer. With keen computer architecture skills and theories, but is also a great people person and team leader. Always ensuring his team are kept motivated through his enthusiasm for the job. Tim has a great personality and demeanour, and truly is passionate and enjoys his work. He is always straight talking and upfront about issues and always keen to find solutions and innovate where possible.

John Newton - Director - Sereno Ltd

Tim is one of the most industrious & knowledgeable Drupal developers I have had the pleasure of working with. Not only are his technical skills first rate, he also excels at managing and prioritising his work-schedule. Tim also has a quality rare in a hard-core coder - he is great with clients! I would certainly recommend him to anyone seeking advanced custom coding development for their Drupal project.

Al Croston - Director - Axis Twelve

Tim joined us on a short term contract for a complex and large project. The very tight timescales, meant it was crucial that new starters were able to hit the ground running. Tim's experience and expertise in Drupal meant that this was possible. This combined with Tim's pragmatic approach, made him a valuable and respected member of the team.