UK Software Architecture Guide (2026)

ClickMasters software architecture review: (1) sprint 1 architecture design (included in all ClickMasters projects — not billed separately — 2–5 days), (2) standalone architecture review of existing system (assessment of existing architecture for FCA PS21/3, NHS DTAC, or UK GDPR compliance): £3,500–£8,000 (2–4 weeks). Deliverables: architecture decision records (ADRs), IBS map (if FCA regulated), data flow diagram (DTAC/GDPR), identified risks and remediation roadmap. Architecture review ROI: typical UK software delivery failure involves £100,000–£500,000 wasted on wrong architecture choices. £5,000 architecture review prevents £200,000 rework — the most leveraged investment in a software project.

Modular Monolith: a single deployable application with clear internal module boundaries (enforced by code — not just convention). Module boundaries: (1) each module has its own folder (src/modules/payments/, src/modules/accounts/), (2) modules communicate via well-defined interfaces (exported service classes — not direct database access across module boundaries), (3) PostgreSQL schemas per module (payments schema, accounts schema — each module owns its tables), (4) no cross-module direct database queries (module A cannot query module B's tables — must call B's service interface). Why ClickMasters recommends it: (1) operational simplicity (one deployment, one CI/CD pipeline, one monitoring dashboard), (2) future-proof (module boundaries defined upfront — extract any module to microservice when justified, not before), (3) NHS DTAC simplicity (one DTAC evidence pack, one penetration test scope), (4) FCA PS21/3 simplicity (IBS boundaries enforced in code — same as microservices but without operational overhead).