For agencies · Inherited builds

Somebody else built it. Now it is your problem.

A client arrives with a site nobody can explain, a developer who has gone quiet, or a build that breaks every time it is touched. The first job is finding out what is actually there.

Review before we touch it Cost known up front No blame Documented after
What this is

Inheriting somebody else’s code.

Rescue work is the most common reason agencies call us for the first time. Something is broken, the person who built it is unavailable, and the usual options are an expensive rebuild or a guess.

We start by establishing what exists rather than quoting on what it looks like, because the two are rarely the same.

What it covers

  • Broken functionality on a site anyone built
  • Legacy code with no documentation
  • Performance problems that got worse over time
  • Difficult handovers from a previous developer
  • Platform and dependency versions that have drifted
  • A written review of what we found, whatever you decide next
At a glance

Review, stabilise, then improve.

website-rescue / architecture diagram
Taking on a build someone else wroteInherited buildno documentationTechnical reviewwhat is actually thereStabilisestop the bleeding firstImproveonce it is safe to
We review before we touch anything, so the cost of fixing is known before the work starts rather than discovered halfway through. Scroll the diagram sideways to see all of it.
How it works

Why the review comes first.

A rescue quoted without a review is a guess. We look at the codebase, the hosting, the dependency versions and what is actually running, then tell you what it will take — including when the honest answer is that rebuilding costs less than repairing.

Once it is stable we document what we found, so the next person is not in the same position.

rescue / sequencetypical
Technical reviewWhat is actually there
First
StabiliseStop the immediate problem
Then
DocumentSo it is not a mystery twice
Always
ImproveOnce it is safe to
After
Agency questions

Questions agencies ask.

Can you work on a site we did not build?
Yes, and most rescue work is exactly that. We have no interest in criticising whoever built it — the useful question is what it would take to make it reliable from here.
How do you price it when nobody knows what is wrong?
We do not quote the fix before the review. The review itself is a defined, priced piece of work, and it produces a written account of what is there and what the options cost. You are free to take that and do nothing.
What if it is cheaper to rebuild?
Then we will say so. Sometimes patching a build is throwing money at something that will need replacing in a year anyway, and we would rather tell you that before you spend it than after.
Who owns the work at the end?
The work belongs to your agency. You keep the repository, the hosting accounts and the client relationship, and we will hand over to anyone you choose without obstruction.
Partner with us

Need a development team behind you?

Tell us how your agency works and where the gaps are. We will tell you honestly whether we are the right fit, and what it would cost.