Meet Philip Belcher

By JUMP

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Philip Belcher on a sofa in the JUMP office

Meet the team:
Philip Belcher, Web Developer

Following the introduction of our ‘Meet the team’ page comes our mini blog series. Each week, hear personally from our team members about their roles at JUMP and more. 

 

Tell us a bit about yourself

I was born in Sunderland but have moved around the UK a lot since I was a child due to my dad being in the Royal Air Force. I’m a massive fan of extreme metal music, the crazier the better. I love going to gigs and head-banging (more like ‘nodding my head’ as I’m getting older). Finally, I’m a big PC gamer and technology enthusiast.

 

Summarise your role at JUMP

Well, I’ve only been at JUMP for a week at the time of writing so it’s going to be a short summary! I’m currently developing a fully-responsive website with a custom CMS backend for a client. It’s a nice, small project and I look forward to working on larger scale projects over the coming weeks. I’m hoping to bring some of my mobile development skills to further enhance JUMP’s mobile strategy.

 

What got you into web development?

I started learning HTML/CSS in my own time during school nearly 20 years ago and fell in love with it instantly. I have always been a bit of a computer geek so it seems like a natural fit. Having an interest in new technology has helped me keep up to date with development technologies over the years, including HTML, ActionScript3, Javascript, PHP, Laravel etc.

 

Describe the project you have worked on that you are proudest of. What did you do that worked out particularly well?

Like I said, my time at JUMP has just begun, but in my previous role I was the sole designer and developer on a full CMS website with a booking system integrated throughout. Despite a very short deadline, I had to totally redevelop the booking system to make it fit for purpose and add multiple high-level features. After launch, the website is now used by 50+ administrators and serves hundreds of teachers across the region.

 

What do you hope to achieve at JUMP?

I want to continue to grow and develop my skills with the latest development technology and help JUMP to be the best it can be. I hope to help develop JUMP’s mobile development strategy too, to ensure we’re developing cutting-edge cross-platform mobile apps.

 

What do you like most about web development/being a web developer?

I love the fast pace. You can’t sit around and rest on your laurels, otherwise you’ll find yourself being left behind. That may sound scary, but it means you’re never bored and are constantly challenged. I also love the community and how open they are with sharing ideas, best-practice and even code – it means we’re always getting better at our jobs.

 

Finally, what advice would you give to any junior developers starting out?

Never give up. You’ll be getting errors in your code every single day and it’s important to remember not to get stressed and realise that it’s part of the learning process. Stackoverflow is a life-saver! Immerse yourself in the design and developer community by following blogs, websites, people on Twitter. I think it’s important for developers to have a decent knowledge of design principles too – and vice-versa! 

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