diff --git a/default-template.php b/default-template.php
index 460c9b104b023531009561896624570544cc39ba..8758c1d1ef68d09eeeb5e6b26da653f7a4e09be0 100644
--- a/default-template.php
+++ b/default-template.php
@@ -1,4 +1,6 @@
-<!DOCTYPE html>
+<?php
+// phpcs:ignoreFile -- legacy code in need of refactoring.
+?><!DOCTYPE html>
 <html>
 	<head>
 		<title><?php wp_title( '|', true, 'right' ); bloginfo( 'name' ); ?></title>
@@ -40,4 +42,4 @@
 		<p class="copyright">Copyright &copy;<?php echo date( 'Y' ); ?> <strong><?php bloginfo( 'name' ); ?></strong> unless otherwise noted.</p>
 
 	</body>
-</html>
\ No newline at end of file
+</html>