Newcastle web design agency Peacock Carter

North East web design agency Peacock Carter delivers NHS contract

Web design agency Peacock Carter won the contract after impressing Sheffield Teaching Hospitals, the originator of the project, with their technical and creative skills.

The website, for the NHS’ Operational Delivery Networks, provides public-facing content in three key areas, including major trauma, adult critical care, and serious burns. Doctors and other healthcare professionals are also able to access more detailed information via a secure log in. The contract includes ongoing support and maintenance for the NHS over a three year period, provided by Peacock Carter’s team of developers and consultants based in Gateshead’s Northern Design Centre.

“I’m really pleased, but not surprised, to be able to pull in this calibre of client to the North East. We’re a great region to do business with.”

Now in its 10th year since its founding in Durham in 2006, Peacock Carter has become a pillar of the agency scene in the North East of England. The agency regularly receives enquiries from clients around the world impressed by their track record, knowledge and passion, looking for expertise with ecommerce and content management platforms that can be hard to come by. As members of Digital Union, a collective of North East creative and digital businesses, Peacock Carter fully supports the “ThisisMINE” (Made In the North East) campaign to highlight the great work we do in those in the region.

Richard Carter, Managing Director of Peacock Carter, said: “I’m really pleased, but not surprised, to be able to pull in this calibre of client to the North East. We’re a great region to do business with.”

Another “big and mighty” client for Peacock Carter

The agency’s clients range from the “big and mighty” clients, from international corporations and government departments, to smaller local businesses and organisations looking to improve their digital presence. “I never imagined when we started the business all those years ago that we would attract clients such as the NHS. I just loved building websites, and it seemed an obvious career choice – but it’s something we’re now very comfortable doing as a team.”

The agency has worked once before with the NHS, developing a prototype system in 2010 to create a more open, democratic process for support group information within the NHS, and has developed an enviable reputation for expertise in the region. Peacock Carter add the NHS to a client list which includes the University of Edinburgh, University College Dublin, the International Life Sciences Institute, and the Scottish Government.

This article was originally published on bDaily here.

Digital Union relaunch 2016, Newcastle upon Tyne

This is Made In The North East – #thisisMINE

Last night saw the relaunch of Digital Union at the brilliant Wylam Brewery venue in Exhibition Park, and Peacock Carter were there to support this valuable resource for web and digital agencies.

Digital Union is a member organisation for the local digital and creative sector; it’s been around in many guises over past years, but this relaunch sees a very promising future with the support of its new organisers, Generator.

As part of the relaunch, a new campaign – This Is Made In The North East, supported by the #thisisMINE hashtag – was introduced to the room as a brand to help promote all of the great work in our sector produced under our noses.

Peacock Carter & the North East

Peacock Carter are very proud to be made in the North East. Since our foundation in 2006 in Durham, we’ve moved to Gateshead, had a few years in the centre of Newcastle, and are now nestled on the Gateshead quayside near fantastic venues such as The Sage and the Baltic art gallery.

NewcastleGateshead is a great place to live and work, and our location has been no barrier to building up an impressive roster of clients including the NHS, the University of Edinburgh and University College Dublin.

We look forward to future Digital Union events and getting the attention for the North East digital sector that it deserves!

We are Peacock Carter. Made In The North East.

Filter Magento payment options by shipping address

We’re really pleased to be able to announce the release of a free module for Magento today: the rather catchily named “Filter Magento payment options by shipping address” module.

Peacock Carter have developed a Magento’s module to allow you to filter the payment options available by shipping address (what we’d call “delivery address” in the UK!); This module allows you to restrict how a customer pays by country. The module is available for free download and use from our Github account.

Development of “filter payment options by shipping address” module for Magento

Screenshot of Magento module to restrict payment by shipping address

A Magento Enterprise client based in the Middle East required that the “Cash on delivery” payment method be made available to any billing address but limited to just one shipping country.

Cash on delivery is a very popular payment method in the Middle East. Cash on delivery operates as you would expect: you check out from your Magento store as usual, selecting “Cash on delivery” as your payment method (rather than delivery method). A courier then delivers your purchases, and collects payment for the order at the same time.

Our Magento client only wanted to offer this option in the UAE, and none of the surrounding countries they operate in. The client’s website sells computer games and a large proportion of their clients are under 18 years old, and don’t have their own credit cards. Our client found that this customer group would therefore often use their parents’ work address as the billing address, and this meant that the payment address was often outside the UAE itself.

Compatibility with Magento Community and Magento Enterprise

The development of the Magento module allows the client to control which payment methods are displayed for which products, and is tested on Magento Community versions 1.9.0.1+ and Magento Enterprise 1.14.0.1+.

An evening at the Sage, Gateshead

Thanks to our good friends at Durham Business Group, we were invited to an evening at the world famous Sage Gateshead music venue, to see the Royal Northern Sinfonia in action.

An evening at the Sage, Gateshead

 

Having never attended a show at the Sage, we jumped at the chance to ditch our desks and computers for a sophisticated night at this unique building. We started the evening at the Level 1 bar overlooking the Quayside, with a pint of Tyneside Blonde (feeling very Geordie at this point).

An evening at the Sage, Gateshead - main hall

We then walked through into the venue’s main hall (Hall One) which was much more grand than we were expecting! We sat (on the comfiest seats) to be serenaded by the Royal Northern Sinfonia who played with a talent and passion that engulfed the entire hall – summing up the great highs and dramatic lows of life in one set of orchestral music.

Royal Northern Symphonia at Sage Gateshead

Overall, it was a fantastic evening and we would recommend that anyone see & hear the talent of the Royal Northern Sinfonia for themselves!

View of Newcastle quayside from Sage Gateshead

 

 

 

Peacock Carter become members of Durham Cathedral’s 995 Club

We’re proud to have become members of Durham Cathedral’s 995 Club.

Durham Cathedral 995 Club logo

The fees from the 995 Club are used towards the Open Treasure project at Durham Cathedral, which is raising funds towards many enhancements for cathedral visitors. The most important aspect of this to me is a new museum with suitable environment and security to house the cathedral’s many treasures including the original sanctuary knocker.

The 995 Club is a great way for businesses to support the cathedral with a commitment of just £99.50 per year for 4 years.

Of course, if you don’t want to commit to the 995 Club’s fees, you can donate to the cathedral in other ways (my personal favourite being purchasing Lego bricks to add to the Lego Durham Cathedral model being built).