Terms of Service

1. Definitions

In these Terms:

• "ClearCandidate", "we", "us", "our" means ClearCandidate Ltd, a company registered in England and Wales.
• "Platform" means the website, API, and mobile application operated by ClearCandidate.
• "Candidate" means an individual who registers as a job-seeker.
• "Employer" means a business or individual who registers to browse and hire candidates.
• "Profile" means the anonymous public-facing record created by a Candidate.
• "Clearance" means the event in which a Candidate's identity and contact details are revealed to an Employer, following mutual agreement.
• "Agreement" means the pre-clearance document signed by both Employer and Candidate confirming the terms of a placement.
• "Hiring Request" means an approach made by an Employer to a specific Candidate.
• "Slot" means a unit of concurrent placement capacity purchased via an Employer subscription.

2. The service

ClearCandidate operates a blind talent marketplace. Candidates create anonymous profiles containing professional information only — no name, photograph, contact details, or other identifying information is visible to Employers before Clearance. This is a deliberate design choice to reduce unconscious bias in hiring.

We facilitate introductions between Candidates and Employers. We are not an employment agency and do not act as an employer, recruiter, or staffing provider. Any employment relationship formed through the Platform is directly between the Employer and Candidate.

We do not guarantee that use of the Platform will result in a successful hire or in employment. We are a marketplace only.

3. Eligibility

Candidates

To register as a Candidate you must:

• Be at least 16 years old (or the minimum working age applicable to you).
• Be seeking work in the United Kingdom.
• Provide accurate information about your professional experience, qualifications, and right to work status.

Employers

To register as an Employer you must:

• Be a legitimate business, sole trader, or organisation operating in or hiring for roles in the United Kingdom.
• Have the authority to enter into binding contracts on behalf of your organisation.
• Intend to use the Platform solely for genuine hiring activity.
• Comply with all applicable employment law, including the Equality Act 2010, and conduct lawful right to work checks prior to the commencement of employment.

4. Accounts

You are responsible for maintaining the confidentiality of your login credentials and for all activity under your account. You must notify us immediately at support@clearcandidate.co.uk if you become aware of any unauthorised access.

You may only hold one account per role type (i.e. one Candidate account and/or one Employer account). Creating multiple accounts to circumvent restrictions is prohibited.

We reserve the right to suspend or terminate accounts that we reasonably believe are being used fraudulently, in breach of these Terms, or in a way that harms other users.

5. Candidate obligations

By using the Platform as a Candidate you agree that:

• All information you provide — including skills, qualifications, work history, right to work documents, National Insurance number, and DBS certificate details — is accurate, current, and not misleading.
• You will not include any personal identifying information (name, contact details, address, photographs) in your public Profile fields.
• Your right to work self-declaration is truthful. You acknowledge that Employers are required by law to conduct their own right to work check before employment commences.
• Any DBS information you declare is accurate. Providing false DBS information may constitute a criminal offence.
• You will respond to Hiring Requests in good faith and will not accept positions you do not genuinely intend to take up.
• You will not use the Platform to solicit business, advertise services, or for any purpose other than seeking employment.

6. Employer obligations

By using the Platform as an Employer you agree that:

• You will use Candidate data accessed through the Platform solely for the purpose of assessing and progressing a genuine hiring decision for the specific role for which you contacted that Candidate.
• You will not screen out Candidates on any protected characteristic under the Equality Act 2010, including age, disability, gender reassignment, marriage or civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex, or sexual orientation.
• Before a Cleared Candidate commences work, you will conduct a full right to work check as required by the Immigration, Asylum and Nationality Act 2006 and accompanying guidance, regardless of any information provided on the Platform.
• For roles that legally require a DBS check, you will obtain your own DBS check through the appropriate route (or use the Candidate's Update Service subscription if available) prior to the commencement of employment.
• You will not contact Candidates via any channel other than the Platform until Clearance has occurred.
• You will not share Cleared Candidate data with third parties not involved in the relevant hiring decision.
• Job openings created on the Platform represent genuine vacancies.

7. Subscriptions & payment

Employers access the Platform via a paid monthly subscription. Subscription tiers differ by the number of concurrent active Slots available. All plans include access to all hiring tracks.

A Slot is consumed when a Hiring Request reaches Agreement status (both parties have signed). Slots are released when:

• A sick cover or temporary placement is marked as completed by the Employer.
• A permanent or part-time permanent placement's trial period has elapsed (minimum one month).
• An apprenticeship placement reaches Clearance.

Subscription fees are billed monthly in advance and are non-refundable except where required by law. You may cancel your subscription at any time; cancellation takes effect at the end of the current billing period. We reserve the right to change subscription pricing with 30 days' notice.

We use Stripe as our payment processor. By subscribing you agree to Stripe's terms. We do not store full card details on our servers.

8. The clearance process

Clearance is triggered by ClearCandidate upon receipt of a fully signed Agreement and completion of our internal verification checks. Once Cleared:

• The Employer gains access to the Candidate's full profile including name, contact details, address, right to work document type and share code (if applicable), National Insurance number, and CV.
• This access is retained for the duration of the active placement and for our standard data retention period thereafter.
• The Employer assumes full legal responsibility for conducting all pre-employment checks required by law.

ClearCandidate does not verify the accuracy of Candidate information beyond our basic checks. We are not responsible for any Candidate misrepresentation discovered after Clearance.

9. Prohibited conduct

You must not use the Platform to:

• Post false, misleading, or fraudulent information.
• Harvest or scrape Candidate data using automated tools.
• Attempt to circumvent the Clearance process to obtain a Candidate's identity before mutual agreement.
• Discriminate against Candidates on the basis of any protected characteristic.
• Reverse-engineer, decompile, or attempt to extract our source code.
• Use the Platform to facilitate any unlawful activity, including illegal working or tax evasion.
• Send unsolicited communications, spam, or commercial messages to other users.
• Impersonate any person or organisation.

10. Intellectual property

All rights in the Platform — including software, design, trademarks, and content produced by ClearCandidate — belong to ClearCandidate Ltd. You are granted a limited, non-exclusive, non-transferable licence to use the Platform for its intended purpose only.

You retain ownership of the content you submit (your Profile, CV, etc.). By submitting content you grant us a licence to store, display, and process it for the purpose of operating the Platform.

11. Limitation of liability

The Platform is provided "as is". To the maximum extent permitted by law, ClearCandidate excludes all warranties, express or implied, including fitness for a particular purpose and uninterrupted availability.

ClearCandidate will not be liable for: any indirect, consequential, or economic loss; loss of profits or revenue; failure of a hiring process; any Candidate misrepresentation; or an Employer's failure to comply with employment law.

Our total aggregate liability to you in any twelve-month period shall not exceed the greater of £100 or the total fees you have paid to us during that period.

Nothing in these Terms limits liability for death or personal injury caused by our negligence, fraud or fraudulent misrepresentation, or any liability that cannot be excluded by law.

12. Termination

You may close your account at any time by contacting support@clearcandidate.co.uk. Closing a Candidate account will remove your Profile from the Platform. Closing an Employer account will end your subscription at the end of the current billing period.

We may suspend or terminate your account immediately for material breach of these Terms, fraudulent activity, or conduct that puts other users at risk. We will give reasonable notice where possible.

On termination, provisions that by their nature should survive (including liability, intellectual property, and governing law) will remain in effect.

13. General

These Terms are governed by the laws of England and Wales. Any disputes shall be subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of England and Wales.

We may update these Terms from time to time. We will notify registered users of material changes by email at least 14 days before they take effect. Continued use of the Platform after that date constitutes acceptance.

If any provision of these Terms is found to be unenforceable, the remaining provisions will continue in full force and effect.

These Terms constitute the entire agreement between you and ClearCandidate regarding use of the Platform.

To contact us: support@clearcandidate.co.uk