Senior Backend Engineer (Python/FastAPI) – Tech for Good / CSR Opportunity

Basic Information

• Company: Buzz Movement C.I.C. (Community Interest Company)
• Location: Remote (London-based team)
• Job Type: Pro Bono / "Bench Injection" / CSR Partnership
• Commitment: Flexible (e.g., a 1-2 week "Impact Sprint" or ongoing Architectural Advisory)
• Experience Level: Senior / Lead

The Mission: Engineering an Intervention for Youth Loneliness

Buzz Movement C.I.C. is building "Project Connect," a digital intervention platform designed to dismantle the "Invisible Barrier" of social anxiety for the 16–29 demographic. We are currently in Sprint 8 of 10, working with a passionate team of student volunteers.

The Challenge We have reached a critical architectural inflection point. Ee need a Senior Backend Specialist to architect the complex, high-risk engines that power the platform's unique value proposition. We need you to come in, audit the current state, and build the "hard parts" that are blocking our velocity.

This is an opportunity to use your Python/FastAPI expertise to solve genuine technical challenges—privacy-by-design and real-time synchronisation, ensuring our "Tech for Good" mission is built on a rock-solid foundation.

The Scope: Where We Need Your Firepower

We are looking for a senior engineer to execute a specific "Architecture Injection" focused on one or more of these pillars:

1. The "Common Ground Engine" (Algorithmic Matching):
   • Design and implement the logic for our interest-based matching system.
   • Challenge: Ensure the algorithm connects users effectively while strictly adhering to our "Identity-Safe Space" protocols.
2. The "Confidence Builder" (Privacy Architecture):
   • Audit and refactor our data serialisation layers (Pydantic models).
   • Challenge: Implement a rigid "Private-by-Default" permission structure where user data is contextually redacted based on relationship status.
3. "The Buzz" (Real-Time Systems):
   • Scaffold the WebSocket infrastructure for our synchronous "60-second photo reveal" feature.
   • Challenge: Handle state management and latency for a distributed timer across two client devices.

Technical Requirements

• Core Stack: Expert-level Python (3.10+), FastAPI, and SQL (SQLAlchemy/Tortoise ORM).
• Architecture: Deep understanding of RESTful design, Dependency Injection, and Asynchronous programming (async/await).
• Reliability: Experience setting up solid testing harnesses (Pytest) and CI/CD pipelines that a junior team can inherit and maintain.
• Mentorship: Ability to write code that serves as a "Gold Standard" example for our student developers to learn from.

Why This Matters

• Asset Locked Impact: We are a C.I.C., not a startup. Your code is legally "asset locked" for community benefit. You aren't building equity for founders; you are building equity for the community.
• Solve Interesting Problems: This isn't a form-filling app. You are solving distributed timing problems and privacy paradoxes.
• CSR & Recognition: For freelancers or agency developers on the bench, this is a high-impact case study. We will credit you (or your agency) as a "Technical Partner" in our launch materials and press releases.

Ready to deploy your skills for good? Contact us to discuss how a short "Impact Sprint" could save our timeline and change lives. https://www.buzzmovement.com/get-involved