Role: Senior Front-End Software Engineer

Location: Australia
Hours: 40 hours/week
Rate: Competitive hourly (AUD)
Reports to:

The Role

We’re looking for a Senior Front-End Engineer who can craft exceptional user experiences and deliver clean, scalable solutions. In the short term, you’ll focus on building and optimizing front-end features in Svelte, while integrating with a PHP backend and managing content through Luna Headless CMS.

This role is ideal for someone who thrives in an Agile environment, collaborates well with cross-functional teams, and is eager to grow into a full-stack engineer as our platform expands.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead the design, development, and maintenance of responsive user interfaces using Svelte

• Integrate front-end features with a PHP backend and Luna Headless CMS

• Collaborate in an Agile team with designers, backend engineers, and product owners

• Translate business requirements and wireframes into robust technical solutions

• Ensure accessibility, responsiveness, and performance optimization across devices
  Participate actively in sprint planning, stand-ups, retrospectives, and backlog grooming

• Conduct code reviews, mentor junior developers, and uphold coding best practices

• Contribute to architectural discussions with a pathway to expand into full-stack work

Required Qualifications

• 7+ years of front-end development experience, including 2+ years in Svelte or a modern front-end framework (React, Vue, etc.), with a willingness to specialize in Svelte

• Strong skills in JavaScript/TypeScript, HTML5, CSS3

• Experience integrating with PHP backend services

• Hands-on experience with headless CMS platforms (Luna CMS experience is a strong plus)

• Familiarity with RESTful APIs and client–server communication best practices

• Prior experience working in an Agile/Scrum environment, including sprint planning and delivery

• Strong problem-solving and debugging skills

• Excellent communication skills and a collaborative mindset

• Based in Australia (remote/hybrid options available depending on location)

Nice-to-Haves

• Experience with CI/CD pipelines and front-end build tools (Vite, Rollup, Webpack)

• Knowledge of SEO best practices in front-end development

• Familiarity with cloud hosting (AWS, GCP, or Azure)

• Leadership or mentoring experience

Work Environment

• Remote/Hybrid work

• Flexible working hours with required overlap at 9am - 1pm CEST for team coordination

• Fast-paced, collaborative environment with geographically distributed teams

• Regular interaction with cross-functional teams

Why join Local Peoples?

• Representative and inclusive - we are dedicated to building an inclusive and accessible workplace for people from diverse backgrounds

• Impact driven - work towards achieving real impact for people and the environment

• Fantastic culture - driven by a welcoming, supportive and collaborative team environment

• Professional support for design excellence- benefit from being a part of one of Australia’s fastest growing design and delivery communities

• Flexible working arrangements - including the ability to work remotely

• Market rate salaries - attractive remuneration packages in line with the market rate

• Flexible employment types - including the preference for permanent, but will consider contracting

Who are Local Peoples?

Local Peoples is a strategic research and design studio based in Melbourne and Canberra.

Our mission is to design healthy, resilient and resourceful communities. We are proud to be a certified B-Corporation with a strong focus on our social, environmental and economic impact.

We work across brand and digital design, place and experience design,, content and community engagement. Our key partners include state and local government, social enterprises, universities and large commercial organisations. All are experiencing complex challenges right now and we believe that design research, thinking and delivery can help to solve these challenges and make positive change for people and the planet.

We produce www.mattersjournal.com, a publication and community of 100K+, which focuses on design-led social innovation and impact.

Why join Local Peoples?

• Representative and inclusive - we are dedicated to building an inclusive and accessible workplace for people from diverse backgrounds

• Impact driven - work towards achieving real impact for people and the environment

• Fantastic culture - driven by a welcoming, supportive and collaborative team environment

• Professional support for design excellence- benefit from being a part of one of Australia’s fastest growing design and delivery communities

• Flexible working arrangements - including the ability to work remotely

• Market rate salaries - attractive remuneration packages in line with the market rate

• Flexible employment types - including the preference for permanent, but will consider contracting

Local Peoples proudly supports the LGBTQ+ community, neurodiverse individuals, and First Nations people. We are committed to creating inclusive spaces where everyone, regardless of their identity, feels valued and respected. Together, we strive for equality and a positive future for all.

Local Peoples works, creates, and plays on the lands of the Wurundjeri, Bunurong, and Wathaurong peoples of the Kulin Nation, land which has never been ceded. We thank them for caring for this land for over 40,000 years and recognize and pay our deepest respect to Elders past, present, and emerging. This always was and always will be Aboriginal land