ABOUT THIS NOTICE

Aqumen Recruitment is a trading name of Aqumen Business Solutions Limited (“the Company”, “we”, “us”). We are committed to protecting the privacy and security of your personal information. This notice explains how we collect, use, store and protect your personal data in accordance with the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR), the Data Protection Act 2018, and the Data (Use and Access) Act 2025.

We are registered with the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO).

WHO WE ARE

Aqumen Business Solutions Limited is the Data Controller for the personal data we process about you. This means we are legally responsible for deciding why and how your personal data is used. We are an employment agency and employment business as defined by the Employment Agencies Act 1973, providing temporary and permanent recruitment services to clients and work-seekers.

THE PERSONAL DATA WE COLLECT

Depending on your relationship with us, we may collect and process the following categories of personal data.

For all candidates:

• Contact details — name, address, telephone number, email address
• Employment history and CV information
• Qualifications and professional memberships
• Right-to-work documentation
• Driving licence details where relevant to the role
• Emergency contact details
• CCTV footage where used for site security purposes

For temporary workers and contractors, we may also collect:

• Bank details and National Insurance number
• Date of birth and tax details
• References
• Details of criminal convictions where legally required
• Sick leave, disciplinary, grievance and performance information
• Timesheet and working time records

For self-employed contractors, we may also require:

• Companies House information
• Details of public liability insurance
• VAT registration details

For candidates applying to roles within Financial Services, we may also collect:

• Address history, education history and marital status
• Nationality and details of financial credit checks
• Information relating to any previous directorship or company association

HOW WE COLLECT YOUR PERSONAL DATA

We collect personal data directly from you through our website, registration forms, job advertisements, and third-party job boards. We may also collect information from third parties such as referees or publicly available sources. Where we collect information from a third party, we will take reasonable steps to inform you.

WHY WE USE YOUR PERSONAL DATA AND OUR LAWFUL BASIS

We process your personal data for the following purposes, relying on the lawful bases indicated:

• Providing recruitment services and matching you to suitable roles — contractual necessity
• Submitting your details to prospective employers — contractual necessity
• Fulfilling our legal obligations including right-to-work checks — legal obligation
• Administering payroll, tax and National Insurance — legal obligation
• Maintaining records required by HMRC and the National Minimum Wage Act 1998 — legal obligation
• Communicating with you about your registration and placements — contractual necessity
• Maintaining our candidate database and business relationships — legitimate interests
• Sending marketing communications about relevant opportunities — consent (you may withdraw this at any time)
• Ensuring health, safety and security — legitimate interests

USE OF AI-ASSISTED TOOLS

We use Matchmaker Kairos, an AI-enabled recruitment platform, to support our day-to-day recruitment activities. Our staff may use the AI feature within this platform to assist with tasks such as drafting job adverts, reformatting CVs, drafting candidate and client communications, and summarising information.

The Kairos AI feature is a generative assistant that helps our staff with their work. It does not make decisions about you. All output produced by the AI is reviewed by a member of our team before any action is taken, and all decisions affecting you remain with Aqumen Recruitment.

The Kairos platform is provided by Matchmaker Software Limited, who act as our data processor. The AI feature is powered by OpenAI’s API. OpenAI (OpenAI OpCo, LLC) acts as a sub-processor. Your personal data will not be used to train or improve any AI model. We have written Data Processing Agreements in place with both Matchmaker Software Limited and, through them, with OpenAI.

Personal data transferred to OpenAI in the United States is protected by EU Standard Contractual Clauses (2021) together with the UK Addendum issued by the ICO — the approved safeguard for UK data transfers to non-adequate countries.

SENSITIVE PERSONAL DATA

Some personal data requires extra protection under law — for example, information about your health, disability, ethnic background, religion, sexual orientation, or criminal record. We will only collect and process sensitive personal data where we have a specific legal basis to do so, and we will always tell you why we need it. We do not routinely submit sensitive personal data to AI-assisted tools without your prior written authorisation.

DATA SHARING

We may share your personal data with the following categories of recipient:

• Prospective employers and clients — to progress your application or placement
• Payroll and pension providers — to administer your pay where applicable
• IT and software providers — including Matchmaker Software Limited and OpenAI as described above
• Professional advisers — including legal, financial and HR advisers
• Regulatory bodies and law enforcement — where required by law
• Other parties in the context of a business sale or restructuring

All third parties who process personal data on our behalf are required to have appropriate security measures in place and to process data only on our instructions. We maintain written Data Processing Agreements with all such parties.

INTERNATIONAL TRANSFERS

Where we transfer personal data outside the United Kingdom, we ensure that appropriate safeguards are in place in accordance with Chapter V of the UK GDPR. This may include reliance on a UK adequacy decision, the UK International Data Transfer Agreement (IDTA), or EU Standard Contractual Clauses with the UK Addendum. Personal data transferred to OpenAI in the United States is covered by EU Standard Contractual Clauses with the UK Addendum.

HOW LONG WE KEEP YOUR DATA

We retain personal data only for as long as necessary for the purpose it was collected, or as required by law. Our retention periods are:

• Unsuccessful candidate applications — 12 months from date of application. At the 12-month point we will contact you to ask whether you wish to remain on our database. If you give fresh consent, we will keep your data on that basis. If we receive no response or you decline, your data will be securely deleted.
• Successful placements and employee records — 6 years from end of engagement
• Payroll, tax records, timesheets and working time data — 6 years from end of tax year (HMRC requirement and National Minimum Wage Act 1998)
• Right-to-work documentation — 2 years from end of engagement
• Client contact records — 6 years from end of relationship
• CCTV footage — 31 days unless required for an ongoing investigation

Where possible, data will be anonymised or securely deleted once it is no longer required.

YOUR RIGHTS

Under the UK GDPR you have the following rights in relation to your personal data:

• Right of access — you can request a copy of the personal data we hold about you (a Subject Access Request)
• Right to correction — you can ask us to correct inaccurate or incomplete data
• Right to erasure — you can ask us to delete your data where there is no longer a legitimate reason to hold it
• Right to restrict processing — you can ask us to pause our use of your data in certain circumstances
• Right to object — you can object to processing based on legitimate interests
• Right to data portability — you can ask for your data in a machine-readable format to transfer elsewhere

In accordance with the Data (Use and Access) Act 2025, when responding to Subject Access Requests we are required to carry out reasonable and proportionate searches. The one-month response period may be paused where we need to clarify your identity or the scope of your request.

HOW TO RAISE A COMPLAINT

If you have a concern about how we have handled your personal data, please contact us in the first instance. From 19 June 2025 individuals are required to raise complaints with the controller before escalating to the ICO. We will acknowledge your complaint within 30 days and investigate it promptly.

Andy Taylor andy.taylor@aqumenrecruitment.co.uk Building 4, Carrwood Park, Selby Road, Leeds, LS15 4LG Tel: 01977 515626

If you remain unsatisfied after our response you have the right to escalate your complaint to the Information Commissioner’s Office at www.ico.org.uk or by calling 0303 123 1113.

DATA SECURITY

We implement appropriate technical and organisational measures to protect your personal data against unauthorised access, loss, destruction or misuse. Access to personal data is restricted to staff who need it to carry out their role. All staff handling personal data are trained on data protection and are subject to confidentiality obligations. We have procedures in place to detect, investigate and report personal data breaches.

AUTOMATED DECISION-MAKING

We do not make decisions about you based solely on automated processing that would have a significant impact on you without human involvement. Our AI-assisted tools assist our staff but do not make autonomous decisions. All significant decisions remain with our team.

CHANGES TO THIS NOTICE

We review this notice at least annually and whenever there is a material change to the law or to our processing activities. The current version was last updated in April 2026. We will notify you of any significant changes.

Web Privacy and Cookie Policy

Use of the Site

This website is the property of and operated by Aqumen Business Solutions Limited and is made available to you solely on the Terms and Conditions set out below. For the purposes of these Terms and Conditions “Aqumen Business Solutions Limited”, “we”, “our” and “us” means Aqumen Business Solutions Limited; furthermore, “aqumenrecruitment.co.uk” refers to Aqumen Business Solutions Limited’s website and/or any URL constructed from the home page and hosted on the home page web server.

Aqumen Business Solutions Limited may revise the terms and conditions of use at any time and update this information. You should therefore verify this page regularly and review the Terms and Conditions of use.

Governing Law

The Terms & Conditions of use are governed by the law of England and Wales, and each party are submitting and is subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the Courts of England and Wales.

Intellectual Property

Aqumen Business Solutions Limited is the owner and/or authorised copyright licence holder of the logos, trademarks, images and any other content present on aqumenrecruitment.co.uk. By posting this information on our website we do not grant any licence, copyright or use of any other of our intellectual property rights to any third party.

Data Protection

The use of Curriculum Vitae, phone numbers, email addresses, personal addresses and any other personal information supplied to us by you and other users of this website is governed by our “Privacy Policy”. By accepting the Terms and Conditions, you expressly consent to the disclosures of personal data to third parties and to Aqumen Business Solutions Limited use of information as detailed in the Privacy Policy.

The Use of the Website

The information and services available on aqumenrecruitment.co.uk are provided for the purpose of assisting you and other employers in recruiting staff and/or individuals in finding employment. We authorise you to review and download a single copy of the material on this website solely for your personal, non-commercial use.

By accessing aqumenrecruitment.co.uk you agree not to post or transmit incomplete, inaccurate or false information to this website. We accept no responsibility for the content or accuracy of the information that is available or is posted on this website nor do we make any representations in respect of the contents of aqumenrecruitment.co.uk as regards the existence or availabilities of any jobs advertised.

Aqumen Business Solutions Limited, in its sole discretion, shall determine your compliance with the above and shall have the right to block access to any user or delete from this website without any prior notice any material that it deems not to comply or to be objectionable for any reason.

Disclaimer

Aqumen Business Solutions Limited has taken every care in the preparation of the content on this site, but to the full extent permissible by law, we disclaim all responsibility for damage or loss howsoever arising including but not limited to loss of projects, loss of profits, loss of data or consequential or indirect losses arising in contract, tort or otherwise from the use of or inability to use the website and/or any information or materials on aqumenrecruitment.co.uk.

You should note that certain URLs on the site link to other websites which are not under the control of Aqumen Business Solutions Limited. We accept no responsibility or liability for any material on any website that is not under the control of Aqumen Business Solutions Limited.

We make no warranty that the contents of this website are free from the influence of malware which has destructive or monitoring properties and shall have no liability in respect thereof.

Cookies

An HTTP cookie—commonly referred to as just “cookie” – is a parcel of text sent back and forth between a web browser and the server it accesses. Its original purpose was to provide a state management mechanism between a web browser and a web server. Without a cookie (or a similar solution), a web server cannot distinguish between different users, or determine any relationship between sequential page visits made by the same user. For this reason, cookies are used to differentiate one user from another and to pass information from page to page during a single user’s website session. A web server uses cookies to collect data about a given browser, along with the information requested and sent by the browser’s operator (the visitor). Cookies do not identify people, but rather they are defined themselves by a combination of a computer, a user account, and a browser.

Cookies Set by Google Analytics

Google Analytics (a web analytics service provided by Google, Inc) sets a cookie in order to evaluate use of those services and compile a report for us.
For further information please visit Cookies & Google Analytics.

You can Opt-out of Google Analytics cookies.

Facebook

We use a few social networking applications, such as Facebook, to provide additional functionality and sharing capabilities on our websites and applications.