Candlelight Foundation for Children with Special Needs is a non-profit organization dedicated to empowering children with special needs, particularly those diagnosed with Autism, Dyslexia, and ADHD. We are committed to providing support, resources, and opportunities for these children to thrive.We are looking for a Full Stack Web Developer to join our engineering team and contribute to the development of a live, consumer-facing social community platform. This is a hands-on role for a developer who is comfortable working independently, takes ownership of their output, and has a track record of shipping real products to production.
You will work primarily on the frontend using Next.js, while also contributing to backend services, API development, and deployment workflows. The ideal candidate brings strong frontend discipline, full stack awareness, and the confidence to make sound technical decisions without requiring constant direction.
Responsibilities
Frontend Development
Build and maintain performant, responsive UI components using Next.js and React.
Implement and manage rendering strategies (SSR, SSG, ISR) appropriate to each feature.
Ensure consistent, accessible, and high-quality user experiences across devices.
Optimise for Core Web Vitals and real-world performance metrics.
Backend & API Development
Develop and maintain RESTful or GraphQL APIs to support frontend features.
Integrate with databases (MongoDB, PostgreSQL, or similar) and third-party services.
Handle authentication, session management, and user data securely.
Manage environment variables, secrets, and configuration across environments.
Deployment & Infrastructure
Deploy and maintain applications on VPS environments (Hostinger, DigitalOcean, AWS, etc.) or modern cloud platforms.
Configure and manage Nginx, PM2, and Docker as part of deployment workflows.
Support staging and production environment management.
Participate in code reviews and maintain deployment best practices.
Collaboration & Ownership
Work closely with design and product to translate requirements into working features.
Identify and communicate technical risks early without waiting to be asked.
Produce clean, maintainable code and contribute to technical documentation.
Operate with a high degree of autonomy and self-management.
Required Skills & Experience
2+ years of professional experience in web development with live, production-facing applications.
Next.js – strong, demonstrable experience. This is non-negotiable.
React.js and modern JavaScript/TypeScript.
Solid understanding of CSS, responsive design, and component architecture.
Backend development experience (Node.js preferred).
Database experience – MongoDB or a relational alternative.
Experience deploying to and managing VPS or cloud hosting environments.
Familiarity with Nginx, PM2, and Docker in a production context.
Git-based workflows and collaborative development practices.
Ability to work independently and deliver features end-to-end with minimal supervision.
Nice to Have
Experience building social, community, or marketplace platforms.
Familiarity with real-time features (WebSockets, SSE, push notifications).
Experience with Firebase (Auth, Storage, or Firestore).
Knowledge of performance optimisation techniques specific to Next.js.
Experience with CI/CD pipelines and automated deployment workflows.
Exposure to application monitoring and error tracking tools (e.g., Sentry, UptimeRobot).