Infrastructure for public interest work in Gateshead
Gateshead sits right on the line between neighbourhood level organising and big regional decisions. When people start documenting what is going on, the website carrying that work needs to be solid.
I build and protect the sites behind that work. Static builds, Cloudflare setups, lawful fingerprinting, and evidence grade logging, tuned for small teams and community projects that expect to be watched by larger organisations.
Who this fits in Gateshead
The projects that need serious infrastructure are usually the ones asking awkward questions, not the ones with the largest comms budget.
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Community and tenants groups
Resident led projects in areas like Bensham, Felling, Deckham, and Teams that need a public site to track decisions and treatment over time.
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Watchdog and scrutiny projects
People keeping an eye on council decisions, regeneration schemes, transport changes, and contracts that affect Gateshead residents.
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Advocacy and support work
Peer led groups, mutual aid networks, and small charities based around the town centre, the Quays, or the estates that need a stable, low maintenance site.
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Independent voices and small media
Citizen journalists and issue focused blogs covering Gateshead and the wider Tyne corridor that want their site to stay up when a story lands.
If your work is lawful, serious, and likely to attract attention from more than just your immediate neighbours, it belongs here.
What I actually do for Gateshead projects
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Static sites that cope with spikes
Fast static builds that do not rely on heavy plugins or fragile admin panels. Good for projects that might suddenly pick up views from across Tyneside or national outlets.
See Secure static sites.
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Cloudflare firewall and routing
Firewall rules, rate limits, bot mitigation, and Workers set up for public interest work. Search engines are allowed through cleanly, noise and hostile automation are made to work harder.
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Evidence grade logging
Edge logs and exports that give you a clear record of traffic patterns, challenge events, and bypass attempts. Useful when speaking with trustees, regulators, or oversight bodies.
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Monitoring aware fingerprinting
Lawful fingerprinting that runs on your own domain so you can see repeat devices and behaviour, including quiet interest from organisations outside Gateshead.
Detail and examples on Fingerprinting and Edge Tracker.
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Email and DNS that behave
SPF, DKIM, DMARC, and DNS routing so messages to residents, media, and decision makers actually land instead of disappearing into spam when things heat up.
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Governance checks that match reality
Practical fixes to privacy notices, cookie language, and data handling descriptions so they describe what your site is really doing, not what a template assumed.
Local realities in Gateshead
From the Quays to Team Valley and the estates up the bank, Gateshead sits in the shadow of big regional players while dealing with very local problems.
When people start pulling threads on housing, regeneration, policing, health, or council decisions, the audience can quickly grow beyond the town. That often means attention from organisations with more resources than the people raising concerns.
Websites that were thrown together quickly tend to break at that point. Static infrastructure behind Cloudflare behaves very differently.
How I build for that context
- Infrastructure that assumes you will be watched by more than one institution.
- Clear separation between content and technical work, so you keep editorial control.
- Logging and fingerprinting that makes patterns obvious without drowning you in noise.
- Documentation that trustees, volunteers, and community organisers can actually read.
Boundaries, stated clearly
These limits keep the work defensible for both of us.
- Ki-Ki provides technical services only. I am not a publisher, editor, investigator, or legal adviser.
- I do not draft, upload, or assist with allegation content about named individuals. If you publish that kind of material, it is your decision and your responsibility.
- Any limited SEO or onboarding copy I prepare is neutral and only goes live after your written approval.
- You must not imply that Ki-Ki endorses your campaign, your allegations, or your politics.
- If a project crosses into unlawful or high risk territory, I will refuse or terminate the work.
The full position is set out in the Neutral infrastructure policy, alongside the Terms of use and Privacy policy.
Questions Gateshead projects usually ask
Do you only work with registered charities in Gateshead?
No. I work with small charities, CICs, informal groups, and individual projects, as long as the work is lawful, serious, and in the public interest.
Can you harden a site we already have?
In many cases yes. I can place an existing site behind Cloudflare, improve DNS and email, and introduce logging. If the current setup is too fragile, we can plan a move to a static build instead.
Will fingerprinting identify real people by name?
No. It identifies devices and behaviour that hit your site, not named individuals. It is set up as defensive monitoring and aligned with your policies, not as a tool for personal doxxing.
Do you meet in person in Gateshead?
Most work is done remotely, backed by written notes and clear diagrams. If a project is a good fit and travel is practical, we can discuss occasional in person sessions across the North East.
What if a council or contractor disputes what we publish?
I cannot give legal advice, however I can make sure your logs and technical position are clear enough to support conversations with lawyers, regulators, or oversight bodies if you choose to involve them.
Start a Gateshead focused conversation
If your project is based in Gateshead or heavily focused on people there, tell me what you are building, what worries you, and what level of attention you expect. I will be honest about whether I am the right fit.