Web platforms
Laravel Development
A Sydney PHP team building custom Laravel platforms for Australian organisations — from Western Sydney University's AI-driven career platform to subscription streaming for Riptide. We build new platforms, integrate them with everything around them, and rescue the legacy PHP nobody else wants to touch. Part of ourwebsite development practice.
Talk to us about your platform
- 2018
- building since
- 70+
- designers, engineers and product people
- 5
- regionsAustralia, Europe, the Philippines, the Middle East and the USA
- 6,500+
- commits across six repositoriesthe three SES aviation platforms we build and still run
Custom platform builds
Laravel is our backbone for products that don't fit a template: learning platforms, member portals, subscription services, dashboards. Western Sydney University's Western Edge — an AI-driven employability platform on Laravel and Next.js — and Riptide's streaming and e-commerce platform were both built this way.
APIs & integrations
Laravel backends that power more than a website: REST APIs for mobile apps, headless frontends on Next.js, and integrations with the systems your business already runs — payments, subscriptions, CRMs, content platforms and machine-learning services.
Legacy PHP rescue & upgrades
Inherited an ageing PHP codebase — old Laravel, an unsupported framework, or no framework at all? We triage first: stabilise, get it under version control and CI, then upgrade or progressively rebuild on a current Laravel release without stopping the business while we do it.
Long-term support
We stay after launch. Structured maintenance keeps Laravel, PHP and dependencies current, with monitoring, security patching and a roadmap of enhancements — the same partnership model behind platforms we've run and grown for years.
Proof, not promises
When Western Sydney University wanted a personal career coach in every student's pocket, Shakewell built Western Edge — a custom platform on Laravel and Next.js with AI/ML-driven recommendations, skills tracking and alumni networking, now feeding into core curriculum.Read the WSU case study.
For Riptide, we built a subscription streaming platform — profiles, billing, curated video, digitised magazine archives and integrated merch — across web and mobile.Read the Riptide case study.
Engineering, accelerated
Our Laravel work is backed by Jasper — the AI-assisted engineering platform we built and run ourselves at heyjasper.ai — one of theproducts we operate as our own client.
Common questions
Can you take over an existing Laravel or PHP application?
Yes. Inheriting legacy PHP — including older Laravel versions and pre-framework codebases — is regular work for us. We start by getting the application into a state where it can be safely changed: understanding the domain, establishing a local environment, and adding tests around whatever we are about to touch. Rewrites are a last resort, not an opening position.
Can you provide Laravel developers to work inside our team?
Yes — that is staff augmentation, and it is one of our main engagement models. Developers work to your priorities, in your tools and your process, under your technical direction. It suits teams with internal product leadership who need capacity or a specific skill rather than a whole project outsourced.
Do you work with clients in Brisbane, Melbourne and elsewhere?
Our head office is in Sydney and we work with clients across Australia — Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth, Adelaide and regional NSW included. Delivery has been remote-first for years, so a project runs the same way whether you are ten minutes away or in another state: scheduled calls, a shared board you can see at any time, and one named point of contact. We are happy to meet in person in Sydney.
How do you decide between Laravel and a CMS?
By asking who touches the system weekly and what the hard part is. Marketers publishing content point to WordPress; users logging in to do something — accounts, workflows, permissions, reporting — point to Laravel. The full framework is in Laravel vs WordPress for business platforms.
Do you do general PHP development, or only Laravel?
Both. Laravel is where we build new work, but a large share of what we are asked to do is existing PHP — older Laravel versions, legacy frameworks, and codebases that predate any framework at all. If your system is PHP and it needs work, that is the same team either way. Inheriting and stabilising legacy PHP is regular work for us rather than an exception.
Can you provide a PHP developer rather than a whole project team?
Yes — that is staff augmentation, and it is one of our main models. A PHP or Laravel developer joins your team, works to your priorities in your tools, under your technical direction. It suits teams who need capacity or a specific skill rather than a project handed over entirely.
What do you build with Laravel?
Applications rather than websites: member portals, dashboards, booking and workflow systems, APIs serving mobile apps, and the admin surfaces behind them. Western Sydney University's Western Edge platform is a Laravel backend with a Next.js front end, and the Sporting Club of Sydney members app has a Laravel backend behind it.
What happens to the code if we stop working together?
It is yours. Client work lives in repositories you own or that we hand over in full, with the documentation and environment setup needed for another team to pick it up. We would rather be kept because the work is good than because leaving is painful.
Trusted by
“I’ve worked with Michael and the Team for a number of years now on a web development project of strategic value to the University. Michael and the team work in deep partnership and are genuinely invested in the success of the project and the maximising the impact it can deliver to end users. Always exceeding expectations, you will not find a more amiable, grounded and technically proficient team!”
Kelly Whitney
WSU Associate Director; Careers, Talent & Organisational Success
Engagement models
How we work
Four straightforward ways to engage us. Pick the one that fits, or mix them as your needs change.
Staff Augmentation
Add experienced Shakewell developers, designers or specialists directly to your own team. Engagements typically run three to twelve months, but can be as short or long as you need — you get the skills without the commitment and cost of hiring full-time.
About staff augmentationFixed-Scope Projects
Have a defined outcome in mind? We scope it, price it and deliver it as a project — a clear timeline, agreed milestones and a single point of accountability from kickoff to handover.
Embedded Delivery Teams
For larger or longer-running work, a cross-functional Shakewell team — development, design and delivery management — plugs in as your delivery arm, working to your priorities and your reporting cadence.
Support & Maintenance
Already live? We keep websites, stores and apps secure, updated and performing through ongoing retainers — business-hours support as standard, with 24/7 coverage available for critical issues.
About support & maintenance







