Mark Atherton
React Developer
Personal Profile
Diverse range of Internet development, graphic and multimedia design, training, accessibility and usability experience. Outgoing with strong and effective organisational/communication skills, with ability to convey technical concepts to non-technical people. Have worked in a variety of teams but also able to use own initiative to achieve objectives with willingness and capability to learn new skills quickly as required.
Work Experience
Harkness Pies - Freelance React Developer
May 2023 - Present
Created a web App for Harkness Pies (https://matherton.github.io/harkness-pies/) with copy and a few graphics supplied by the owner. The shop is currently getting new vinyls installed at wich point the owner will provide me with shop photo's to replace the current placeholder content.
Sapient - React Developer
March - August 2022
Collaborated with Lloyds Banking Group, creating reusable components and integrating Cypress tests. Ensured seamless live API integration with backend developers
Arnold Clark - React Developer
Feb - July 2021
Redeveloped their native mobile car reservation App to match their InVision Mockups. Developed a number of re-usable React native components which were combined to create a number of views including the dynamic free gift claim splash screen. Redux Sagas used to manage side effects and passing data between the App and Arnold Clarks servers.
Specsavers - PHP Consultant
June - November 2020
Responsible for the redevelopment of SpecSavers in-store iPad app. We created the Application using PHP and Xcode using their design agencies InVision prototype. We worked remotely using Agile Methodology over MS Teams for collaboration, attending daily stand-ups, retrospective, pair programming etc.
BJSS - React Consultant
Dec - June 2020
Created various re-usable React components for Lloyds Banking Group in Storybook with TypeScript. Responsible for the creation of their new React loans Application. The large development team was divided into three scrum teams that did bi-weekly demos of the components they had created in each sprint
Digital Boutique - React Developer
Sept - October 2019
Created Liverpool Football Club's React admin interface which controls the new front end Kit Builder journey. Also created the admin using the React Material UI framework to ensure development time was minimised and went beyond all of L.F.C's requirements for the interface. Worked closely with Backend Magento developers as the interface was developed to be a Magento 2 Module.
Connect Auto - React Developer
Feb 2018 to April 2019
Created a website for Lamborghini from designs supplied by the design department via InVision. Updated the Jaguar Land Rover site with new site functionality eg. passing state from a model component with flow and updating the data on the main page after form submission. Duties on various client websites: creating reusable styled components, bespoke ES6 functionality, creating SVG components, updating JSON data feeds with individual client website content and styles, Integrating the markdown-to-jsx package to expose additional Markup to be added via their CMS WYSIWYG editor.
Tripsology - React Developer
June 2018 to Jan 2019
Responsible for converting the old Talk Holiday codebase into a new tripsology React app. Creating new components to match tripsology responsive designs. Writing required new ES6 functionality within these components to meet requirements. Worked with two senior backend developers to integrate backend API data into http://www.tripsology.com Created components for the: Comment Box, Drop Down Menu, Footer, Google Map Header, Header, Image Slider, Like, Marketing Page, Navigation, Post Box, Profile Picture, Scroll List, Tabs, Tags, Trip Details and Trips.
e-Fundamentals - Front End Developer
November 2018 - June 2018
Employed by e-Fundamentals and was resposible for creating version R3.0 of their eCommerce insight service in React.js. We worked in an agile team and used JIRA to distribute tickets among the development team. As the first development employee in their newly created Edinburgh office I was solely responsible for creating the React front end and seeding fundamentals with mock JSON data until the elastic search API was ready to be integrated. Once it was ready, integrated the Fix The Basics fundamental with live API data.
Visit Scotland - Front End Developer
April 2017 - October 2017
Employed by Visit Scotland on a 6 month contract to cover their Senior Front End Developer who is on Paternity leave. I am responsible for developing their main site and recently created a new responsive footer and adaptive floating back to top button. I am also responsible for creating new interactive maps using the Mapbox API which powers all of the interactive maps on the Visit Scotland website, creating Alterian CMS modules like the Scotland O'Clock page and creating a weather widget using the Open Weather Map API.
Signal - Front End Developer
July 2016 - February 2017
Initially employed by Blonde Digital before they merged with other agencies to become Signal at the end of 2016. I replaced the previous Front End Developer who solely worked on nandos.co.uk and also took on the creation of responsive emails for various clients as well as the development of Renaisance Hotels who are part of the Marriot Hotel chain. Signal used handlebars.js as the framework for all their clients websites.
Freelance WordPress Developer
March 2016 - April 2016
Created Grand Gesture Films WordPress website in a freelance capacity. I worked with a Senior Designer and created the site to match his designs at all screen widths. The website displays their films and one of the main requirements was to implement a Show Reel video background on the home page that could be changed through the WordPress dashboard.
Aegon - Senior UX Consultant
June 2015 - December 2015
Employed by Aegon until the end of 2015 working within the Aegon Mobile team. Duties include: building web journeys from HiFi wireframes, mentoring other members of the team as required, attending scrum meetings and creating required JavaScript functionality in Bootstrap. Primarily worked to develop Retire Ready so that users where easily able to see the benefits of transferring there pension to Aegon.
Neyber - Front-end Web Developer
December 2014 - April 2015
Worked for Neyber in Ezechi (Ez) Britton's SCRUM team in Oxford Circus during their launch of their first client loans application. I was responsible for creating webpages with Bootstrap and Angular.js including required JavaScript functionality. Created all of their responsive emails that get sent out by their client system. Worked closely with the UX and Design departments as well as the BA Manager who assigned tasks through JIRA and we used Agile Scrum.
Match Byte - Web Developer
January 2014 - September 2014
Worked on various client payment gateways including Hong Kong Express, Fly Thomas Cook, JamboJet and created the fully responsive www.matchbyte.com using Bootstrap. I created pages by slicing up designs and creating the required CSS, HTML, JavaScript and jQuery functionality.
Mind Unit - PHP Developer
August 2013 - December 2013
Employed by Mind Unit to develop various clients desktop and responsive websites. I primarily worked with their EasyCMS including the redevelopment of www.city-academy.com, bug fixes, new template builds as well as Wordpress and SilverStripe development as required.
Various short-term contract roles
Highlights of my time undertaking short term contracts in London:
- Front-end Developer, www.wagstaffsdesign.co.uk
Employed on a 4 week contract to cover the Web Team lead who was on a months annual leave. Developed various websites and web apps for their clients using HTML/5, CSS/3, PHP, Photoshop and JavaScript/jQuery. - Wordpress Developer, www.jogdesign.co.uk
Undertook a contract with Jog Design to setup a WordPress site for their client NYSE Euronext. I created the theme to their design specifications and created templates for posts and pages as well as integrating jQuery Masonry to display all of their posts excerpts and main post image on the home page. - Front-end Developer, www.matchesfashion.com
Employed on a by Matches Fashion for a total of 2 months. Duties included: creating new site pages by slicing designs supplied by the Design dept. (i.e. The Womans homepage), creating/testing HTML news letters, CSS banners and product galleries using jQuery for various campaigns and updating the Freda Fashion website using PHP. - Front-end Developer, Push Studios
Worked for Push Studios on a on a week by week rolling contract. I developed four sites in two Multi-site WordPress installations including a Jobs Boards with the JobRoller theme and a fully responsive showcase site using the Sketch Theme so that it adapted for mobile devises.
Selfridges - Web Developer
June 2012 - September 2012
Selfridges employed me on a rolling contract for as a Front-end Web Developer. Responsibilities included coding HTML emails for all Brand marketing campaigns to be viewed in mobile devises, updating Selfridges.com with new content and slicing PSD's and converting into HTML and CSS for online promos.
The Stage Newspaper - PHP/Wordpress Developer
August 2011 - May 2012
The Stage is the newspaper for the performing arts industry. Initially employed to create the Stage events website which was created using the Wordpress hybrid-core framework. The site takes secure online transactions for payment to book the various events The Stage runs and was responsible for implementing a ticketing system through the Eventbrite API, creating the Events Calendar and implementing Wordpress plugins i.e. right hand column of the home page. Also created The Stage directory using Ruby on Rails 3.2 and Github as our code repository. I was responsible for making all the views using HTML5, all the Scss and the controller logic for individual forms I created.
The Health Protection Agency - Web Developer
December 2010 - August 2011
The Health Protection Agency employed me as e-Bug Web Developer responsible for testing development of www.e-bug.eu by our Flash Agency. e-Bug is a European wide antibiotic and hygiene teaching resource for junior and senior school children. I was responsible for Updating e-Bug through XML feeds, creating different languages versions and bug tracking. Developed and administered the e-Bug teachers CMS using Visual Studio and created over 30 language versions. I also created a full testing environment on a development server which allowed me to optimise the MS SQL database backend and fully test new server code.
RØDE MICROPHONES - PHP Developer
February 2010 - August 2010
RØDE has been designing and manufacturing specialist audio equipment in Sydney since 1990 and I worked within the Marketing and Communications Department. Responsibilities included creating PHP forms which allowed users to register and receive promotional gifts, Updating site content through MySQL and creating new sections as required using PHP. Investigated and made recommendations to the Communications Manager on a new server to host all sites internally and to use Indie Click TV as there CDN. Also created pages and templates for the first version of www.rodetv.com (now hosted on Youtube) and the Distributor Portal using WordPress.
AGE UK - Web Producer
January 2007 – October 2009
AGE UK is the UK's largest charity working with and for older people and I worked within Digital. Responsibilities:
- Administering and providing training/support to over 150 users of RedDot Content Management System (CMS), DotMailer our email marketing tool as well as our bespoke CMS the Community Website System (CWS) which was used by local Age Concerns (ACs)
- Creating all HTML e-newsletters and creation of new webpages and RedDot templates
- Working with staff at all levels across the organisation and liaising with external IT suppliers as required
Shetland NHS Board - Internet/Intranet Assistant
April 2003 - March 2005
Worked within the Computer Services department and successfully completed a 2-year funded project to create their Internet site. Key achievements:
- Created Shetland NHS Board's main public facing website which allowed rural island communities access to all local heath care services
- Liaised with every Hospital Department to create their micro sites
- Liaised with Community NHS workers to develop the Community Healthcare section of the site
Internet Assistant - Disability Shetland's Internet Project
April 2002 Apr 2003
Disability Shetland a Voluntary Sector Organization worked on Internet Project for disabled members of the local community. Key achievements:
- Updated and the further development of their web site
- Corresponded with and provided support to clients in the use of their PCs
- Ensured machines operated correctly before installation in clients homes
Key Skills
- React
- Components
- TypeScript
- Git
- Unit/Integration testing
- NPM
- API's
- JavaScript/JSON
- HTML5/CSS
Training / Education
Professional training
Udemy - Understanding TypeScript 2021
Code Academy - JavaScript, jQuery, Learn AngularJS, Learn GIT and PHP
Code School - jQueryAIR, RAILS Best Practice, RAILS for Zombies 2, cssXcountry and 3 for 5
Webcredible - Web accessibility training, Intermediate CSS training
Media Training - Fast Track to ColdFusion
Napier University
Multimedia Technology BSc (2:1) / Computing HND
I passed my Computing HND in 1999 and graduated with a 2.1 Honours Degree in Multimedia Technology in 2002.