Police Memorial UK – Long-Term Technical Development & Cloud System Support

Long-term technical partnership supporting the UK Police Memorial platform over 3–4 years, focusing on backend systems, admin panel development, and scalable cloud infrastructure using Go, AWS, and Kubernetes.

Overview

This project represents a long-term technical engagement with the UK Police Memorial platform, spanning over 3–4 years of continuous development, maintenance, and infrastructure support.

The system evolved from a traditional WordPress-based setup into a more structured and scalable architecture, incorporating Go-based backend services and containerized deployments on AWS using Kubernetes.

The focus was on system reliability, performance, and long-term maintainability for a sensitive public-facing platform managed by trustees.

🧩 Engagement Scope

Across the engagement, responsibilities included:

Development and maintenance of a custom admin panel
Backend service development using Go (Golang)
API layer design and integration between services
System performance improvements and optimization
Infrastructure setup and maintenance on AWS (Kubernetes-based deployment)
Supporting WordPress frontend and legacy CMS components
Ongoing production support and iterative enhancements

🧰 Technology Stack

Backend Services: Go (Golang)
Infrastructure: AWS (EC2, S3, Load Balancing)
Orchestration: Kubernetes (K8s)
Containerization: Docker
CMS Layer: WordPress (custom theme + admin enhancements)
Database: MySQL
Frontend: JavaScript, SCSS, HTML
Version Control: Git
Architecture Style: Hybrid CMS + microservices approach

🔑 Key Contributions

⚙️ Go-Based Backend Architecture

Introduced and maintained Go services to handle performance-critical backend operations and improve system responsiveness.

☁️ Cloud Infrastructure (AWS + Kubernetes)

Managed scalable deployment architecture using AWS and Kubernetes, ensuring high availability and controlled rollouts.

🧠 Admin System Development

Built and maintained custom admin tools to support non-technical stakeholders managing sensitive memorial data.

🔄 System Evolution

Gradually transitioned parts of the system from monolithic CMS logic toward a more service-oriented architecture.

🔧 Production Stability

Ensured continuous uptime and safe deployment practices across a long-running public platform.

🏗 Architecture Approach

The system followed a hybrid architecture:

WordPress used as a content management layer
Go services handling backend processing and API logic
Kubernetes managing deployment scalability and reliability
AWS providing infrastructure and storage layer

This allowed gradual modernization without disrupting existing public-facing functionality.

🚧 Challenges & Solutions

🔄 Legacy System Integration

Maintained compatibility between legacy WordPress components and modern Go-based services.

☁️ Infrastructure Complexity

Managed deployment consistency across AWS and Kubernetes environments while ensuring system stability.

🧩 Long-Term Maintainability

Designed solutions to remain stable over multiple years of evolving requirements and updates.

📌 Outcome

The platform remained stable and operational over several years while gradually evolving into a more scalable and modern architecture.

The system ultimately supported a smooth transition into a newer platform setup while preserving continuity of service.

💬 Note

This engagement reflects a long-term technical partnership involving backend engineering, infrastructure management, and system evolution for a production-grade public platform.

🔗 Project

Website: https://policememorial.org.uk