Senior Backend Developer - Python/Django

We’re partnering with a fast-growing, innovative digital platform that supports a diverse set of online communities. The company focuses on creating scalable, reliable technology solutions for a variety of content and service-driven products. The team values collaboration, innovation, and high-quality engineering, with a focus on building systems that can scale efficiently and adapt to evolving user needs.

The Role:

As a Senior Backend Developer, you’ll be stepping into a key position formerly held by the organisation’s Systems Engineer. This is a highly visible role with real ownership of backend infrastructure, API services, and core platform systems.

What you’ll do:

• Take ownership of backend systems and infrastructure, ensuring scalability, performance, and reliability
• Build and maintain APIs using Django and Django Rest Framework (DRF)
• Work with Celery, RabbitMQ, Redis, and Postgres to manage background tasks, messaging, and database operations
• Integrate with payment systems, ideally Stripe, though this is optional
• Collaborate with frontend engineers, so an understanding of JavaScript is helpful
• Contribute to DevOps processes, including Docker-based deployments and cloud infrastructure management (Cloudflare experience a plus)
• Identify and implement improvements to our system architecture

What we’re looking for:

• Strong experience with Python, Django, and backend development
• Familiarity with background task management (Celery, RabbitMQ, Redis)
• Experience with relational databases (Postgres)
• Understanding of cloud infrastructure, containerization (Docker), and DevOps practices
• Optional but desirable: Stripe integration experience
• Comfortable learning new technologies and taking ownership of the full stack where necessary
• Excellent problem-solving skills and a collaborative mindset

Why this role is exciting:

• Take on a high-responsibility position where your work has direct impact on product and business
• Opportunity to broaden your skill set across backend, systems, and DevOps
• Join a supportive team where flexibility and continuous learning are encouraged

If you’re ready to take the next step in your career and fully own the backend systems of a growing platform, we’d love to hear from you.

Here at Southern Lights, we strive to create an inclusive environment where every employee feels valued and empowered to contribute fully. Our recruitment practices are designed to ensure that all candidates have an equal opportunity to succeed, regardless of their race, colour, ethnicity, gender, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability, religion, or socioeconomic background.