Profile

Photo:

James Handley

    • About Me:

      I live in Harrogate, North Yorkshire, and have two jobs – my main job is as a computer programmer working out risks of flooding, but I’m also a vicar in a local church! I’m married, with two boys, and enjoy crosswords, walking, and cooking.

    • My pronouns are:

      he/him

    • My Work:

      Software developer, working with flood risks.

    • Read more

      JBA work to develop flood risk maps and early warning systems for flooding. I work on the software side writing web-based mapping software (like Google maps, but with floods!)

      I’m involved in cloud computing (our software runs on Amazon Web Services)

    • My Typical Day:

      I start each day with prayer and meditation, and then usually start work by 7.30 or 8.30 am (depending on if I’m going in the office or working from home). I have project and staff meetings throughout the day, and in between I write code and review other people code. I usually finish between 4 and 5pm, and try to be home in time to eat dinner with my family.

    • Read more

      I work from home 2 days a week, and go into the office in Skipton 2 days a week.

      I start each day at work by reading and replying to any e-mails, then check our company news to see if there’s anything I need to know about. I look at my calendar for the day, and see what meetings I’ve got planned.

      I spend most of my time on project work, so I usually get stuck into that – this might be going code reviews of other people’s code, or making changes to my own code based on other people’s reviews of mine. I then check the project task board and see what task is next and start programming that.

      Near the start of each day we have a project “stand up” (so called because we’re meant to all stand up – which keeps the meeting short and focussed) – in reality we are usually sitting at our desks talking on Microsoft Teams.

      I tend to have calls throughout the day with other team members who want help or advice, and we sometimes have longer planning and design meetings to work out how we are going to solve a particular problem or product a specific function.

      There will usually be some non-project related work as well, such as appraisals, seminars, and other business administration.

    CV

    • Education:

      • Emmanuel School London, 1987-1992
      • Imperial College of Science Technology and Medicine, 1992 – 1996
      • University of Leeds, 2000 – 2003
      • St Hild College / University of Durham, 2014-2017 (part time)

    • Qualifications:

      • GCSEs: Maths (A), Physics (A), Chemistry (A), French (A),
        CDT Technology (B), English Language (B), Biology (B), English Literature (C).
      • A-Levels: Maths (A): Physics (A), Chemistry (A), Further Maths (B).
      • MEng (Hons) 1st Class, Computing (Software Engineering), Imperial College London.
      • PhD, Computing and Medical Physics, University of Leeds
      • BA (Hons) 1st Class, Theology, Ministry and Mission, University of Durham
      • CEng (MBCS)

    • Work History:

      • Software Application Developer, Geoplan Spatial Intelligence Ltd., Harrogate.(Jan 2008 – Jun 2021)
      • Software Development Manager, Geosoft Ltd., Leeds. (Sep 2006 – Jan 2008)
      • Teaching Fellow / Research Fellow, School of Computing, University of Leeds.(Nov 2003 – Aug 2006)
      • Software Engineer, Red Fig Ltd. (1996 – 1998, 2000)
      • IT Manager, Holy Trinity Brompton Church, London. (Apr 1998 – Dec 1999)
      • Internet Consultant, Technopolitan Ltd., London. (Apr – Sep 1995)
      • Conference Steward, Imperial College Conference Centre, London. (1993,94 )
      • Kitchen Assistant, PGL Young Adventure. (1992)

    • Current Job:

      Principal Software Developer

    • Employer:

      JBA Consulting Ltd

    • My Interview

      • How would you describe yourself in 3 words?

        A coding vicar

        What did you want to be after you left school?

        At one point a ski-instructor (in Winter) and sailing instructor (in Summer) in Canada! Or a DJ.

        Were you ever in trouble at school?

        Sometimes

        If you weren't doing this job, what would you choose instead?

        A teacher or a full-time vicar

        Who is your favourite singer or band?

        Blondie

        What's your favourite food?

        Pizza

        Tell us a joke.

        A photon walks into a hotel. Receptionist: "Have you got any bags"? Photon: "No, I'm travelling light"

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