A UK software development company for the systems your business runs on
CodeFirst is a software development company in Birmingham, working for organisations across the UK since 2012. We take responsibility for business software that other people built, keep it secure and current, modernise it without stopping the business, and build new systems at a price fixed before work starts.
What you probably want to know first
- What kind of company is CodeFirst?
- A UK software development company that looks after business systems for the long term: maintaining, taking over and modernising software built by others, and building new systems at a fixed price. Founded in 2012, Companies House number 08672649.
- Who do you work for?
- IT managers and operations managers at organisations that depend on bespoke software someone else built: a supplier who has gone, a developer who has left, a system nobody fully understands. Our longest client relationships are more than ten years old.
- Where are you?
- Birmingham, at 11 Brindleyplace, a short walk from New Street station. Our clients are across the UK and in Europe.
- How do you charge?
- New development at a fixed price agreed before work starts. Support and maintenance under a monthly arrangement with a scope agreed in writing, month to month, cancellable on 30 days' notice.
What a software development company should be accountable for
Most organisations do not need a software development company for the first build. They need one afterwards: when the system has been in use for years, the people who built it have moved on, the platform underneath it is going out of support, and every change has become slow and risky. That is the situation we are set up for.
Being accountable for a business system means knowing how it is built, how it is released and what it depends on; fixing it when it breaks; telling you what is coming before it arrives; and leaving it, at any point, in a state another team could take over. We put those duties in writing in every support arrangement and build new systems so that they can be met from day one.
Who we work with
Our clients are organisations whose software is critical to them but whose business is not software. The person we usually work with is an IT manager or an operations manager who has inherited a system and needs it to be dependable. Some of those relationships are now more than ten years old.
We work alongside your existing IT provider rather than replacing it. If a packaged product would do the job, we say so.
Our work
OpenIRIS is the clearest example of the long-term approach. We helped the Friedrich Miescher Institute in Basel set up the team that built its system for booking and charging for shared research equipment, and we have developed and supported it ever since. It has been in continuous service since 2014 and, in the 12 months to October 2026, handled more than 690,000 bookings by more than 20,000 researchers across over 550 research facilities. It is being moved to a new platform one feature at a time while it stays in use.
Logtek is the custom application a supply chain services business runs on: we took it over, moved it to the cloud and have maintained and extended it since. Top Vet lets pet owners find and contact one of 20,000 veterinary practices around the world.
Where we are and how we work
CodeFirst was founded in 2012 by Graham Church after eighteen years as a software developer on systems for organisations including Pfizer, Sony Ericsson, Prudential and ABB. We are based at 11 Brindleyplace in Birmingham and work with clients across the UK and in Europe.
Two things are fixed in how we work. New development is priced before it starts, against a written scope; our explanation of why we work at a fixed price sets out how. And support runs month to month under a service level agreement, with the code, accounts and documentation in your name throughout.
Choosing a software development company
Whoever you choose, four things in the contract matter more than the sales material: who owns the code and the accounts, how quickly a qualified person starts work on a fault, what counts as chargeable change, and how the system is handed back if you leave. Our guide to what a software support contract should include covers each, and the questions to ask a software supplier are the ones we would want to be asked.
Talk to us
Describe the system and what you need. You will hear back from someone who can answer technical questions.
Talk to us about your system 0800 433 7990What we take on
- Maintain and support
- Faults fixed, platforms kept in support, backups tested and small changes made under a monthly arrangement with agreed response times.
- Take over
- Systems whose developer or supplier has gone: we make sure they can be built, released and restored before we change anything.
- Modernise
- Ageing .NET, SQL Server and Access systems moved forward in stages while they stay in use, without a rewrite that stops the business.
- Build
- New internal systems, portals and integrations to a written scope and a fixed price, built to be maintained for years.
- Add AI to what you have
- Document reading, search across your own records and drafting assistance built into the systems you already run.
How an engagement starts
First conversation
You tell us what the system does, what is wrong or what you need, and what is at stake. We say whether we are the right people for it and, if not, who might be.
Assessment or discovery
For an existing system, a code audit reports its condition and risks, with the fee credited against the work that follows. For new work, discovery pins down the scope well enough to price.
Written scope and price
A fixed price for a project, or a monthly fee with response times for support, with the assumptions and exclusions written down before anyone commits.
Work in visible steps
You see working software regularly during a build, and receive a monthly summary of what was done and what we recommend during support.
Ownership stays with you
The source code, accounts and documentation are yours throughout, kept in a state another team could pick up.
A good fit when
- Your organisation depends on bespoke software and wants one accountable team for it.
- The people who built the system are no longer available, or no longer responsive.
- You need a known price for a budget or a board decision.
- Your systems are on Microsoft technology: .NET, SQL Server, Access, Azure.
Probably not for you if
- You are building the first version of a product to test a market; a product studio suits that better.
- You need support for a packaged product such as Sage or Dynamics; its vendor or reseller is the right place.
- You need general IT support for PCs, email and networks.
“We tried several companies when we started this project and CodeFirst came out way ahead of the others in terms of quality and speed. We are extremely happy with the services received.”
Questions we are asked
How is a software development company different from an IT support company?
An IT support company keeps PCs, networks, email and servers running. A software development company works on the applications themselves: the code, the database and the integrations behind the systems your staff use. We do the software side and work alongside whoever provides your IT support.
Can we see examples of your work?
Yes. OpenIRIS, the research facility booking and billing system we have developed and supported since 2014, now handles more than 690,000 bookings a year for institutions across Europe. Logtek is an asset management system we took over and improved. Each has a case study on this site, and our work for the Friedrich Miescher Institute is reviewed on Clutch.
Do you work on software that another company built?
Yes. Most of the systems we maintain were built by another supplier, an in-house team or a single developer who has since left. We start with an assessment so that both sides know what state the system is in before we take responsibility for it.
Which technologies do you work with?
Mostly business systems on Microsoft technology: .NET Framework and .NET, SQL Server, ASP.NET Web Forms and MVC, Access, Azure, and the JavaScript front ends of the last fifteen years. We know how these systems were typically built, where they tend to fail and how to move them forward.
Do you use AI to write the software?
We use AI tools throughout development, which is a large part of why our prices and timescales are lower than they used to be. Engineers design the system, review every change and are accountable for the result.
Should we use a software company, a freelancer or an in-house developer?
It depends on how long the system has to last and how much depends on it. A freelancer is cheaper for a short, well-defined job; an in-house developer makes sense when there is a full-time stream of work; a company is the right choice when the system must outlast any one person. Our comparisons set out the trade-offs.
Tell us about your system
Say what it does, what it is built on and what is worrying you. We will reply with what we would look at first and whether we are the right people to help.