Privacy Policy - Clear Consulting Group

Clear Consulting Group Privacy Notice

Last updated: 29 June 2026

1. Introduction

Clear Consulting Group Ltd respects your privacy and is committed to protecting your personal information.

This privacy notice explains:

what personal information we collect;
how and why we use it;
the lawful bases on which we rely;
where we obtain it;
who we may share it with;
how long we keep it;
how we protect it; and
the rights available to you.

This notice applies to personal information processed in connection with:

our website;
enquiries about our services;
prospective and existing clients;
suppliers and professional advisers;
business and networking contacts;
candidates and prospective associates;
associates, consultants and contractors;
directors, employees and workers; and
our wider business, marketing and professional activities.

Where we process personal information solely on the instructions of a client, the client may be the data controller and its own privacy notice may also apply.

2. Who we are

Clear Consulting Group Ltd is a company registered in England and Wales under company number 08470077.

Our registered office is:

Clear Consulting Group Ltd
24 Nicholas Street
Chester
CH1 2AU

Clear Consulting Group Ltd is generally the data controller for the personal information described in this notice. This means that we decide why and how that information is processed.

Questions, requests or complaints about this notice or our use of personal information should be sent to:

Privacy Lead
Clear Consulting Group Ltd
24 Nicholas Street
Chester
CH1 2AU

Email: [email protected]

3. The personal information we collect

The information we collect depends on your relationship with Clear and the reason for our contact with you.

Identity and contact information

This may include:

name and title;
postal address;
email address;
telephone number;
signature;
employer or organisation;
job title and responsibilities; and
professional social-media or online profile details.

Professional and business information

This may include:

employment history;
professional experience and areas of expertise;
qualifications, accreditations and professional memberships;
business interests and requirements;
records of meetings, communications and correspondence;
information about projects, contracts and opportunities;
feedback and performance information; and
publicly available professional information.

Candidate, associate and contractor information

Where you apply for a role, express an interest in associate work or are considered for an engagement, we may collect:

your CV and professional profile;
employment and assignment history;
qualifications, accreditations and training records;
availability and preferred working arrangements;
current or proposed rates;
interview, assessment and selection information;
references and information provided by referees;
proof of identity and right-to-work information;
details of a personal service company, umbrella company or other intermediary;
insurance and compliance information;
conflicts of interest;
client submission and onboarding information;
contracts, statements of work and assignment records;
timesheets, invoices and expense information;
client feedback and information about assignment delivery; and
screening or background-check information where relevant and legally permitted.

We will normally tell you before sending an identifiable CV or professional profile to a prospective client.

Employment and worker information

Where relevant to directors, employees and workers, we may process:

employment contracts and personnel records;
salary, payroll, pension and benefits information;
tax and National Insurance information;
bank details;
working hours, leave and absence information;
training, development and performance records;
disciplinary, grievance and complaint information;
health and safety records;
emergency contact details; and
information required to manage or end the employment relationship.

Financial and commercial information

This may include:

bank and payment details;
invoices and transaction records;
purchase orders;
fees, rates and expenses;
tax and accounting records;
contractual information;
insurance information;
credit and payment-risk information; and
records relating to claims, complaints, disputes or debt recovery.

We do not ordinarily collect or retain complete payment-card details through our website.

Website and technical information

When you use our website, we may collect:

your internet protocol address;
browser and device information;
website usage and navigation information;
dates and times of visits;
the website or source that referred you to us;
security and access logs; and
information collected through cookies or similar technologies.

Further information is provided through our Cookie Policy and website cookie settings.

4. Special-category and criminal-offence information

Some types of personal information receive additional legal protection.

Special-category information includes information about matters such as:

health and disability;
racial or ethnic origin;
religious or philosophical beliefs;
political opinions;
trade-union membership;
genetic or biometric identification;
sexual orientation; and
sex life.

We do not seek to collect this information unless it is necessary and lawful to do so.

We may, for example, process limited health or disability information to:

make reasonable adjustments;
meet occupational-health requirements;
manage absence or availability;
protect health and safety;
respond to an emergency;
meet employment or social-protection obligations; or
establish, exercise or defend a legal claim.

We may process criminal-conviction, offence, allegation or background-check information where it is relevant to a particular role or engagement and where the processing is authorised or required by law.

Where we process these types of information, we identify the applicable legal condition and apply appropriate access, confidentiality, security and retention controls.

5. How we obtain personal information

We may obtain personal information:

directly from you;
from your employer or organisation;
from existing or prospective clients;
from recruitment agencies;
from umbrella companies and other intermediaries;
from referees;
through professional introductions and referrals;
through job boards and recruitment platforms;
from service providers carrying out authorised checks;
from publicly available professional sources, including LinkedIn, company websites, professional directories and Companies House;
from public authorities and regulators where appropriate; and
automatically when you use our website.

Where another person provides information about you, we expect them to have the authority or another lawful reason to do so.

6. How and why we use personal information

We only process personal information where we have a lawful basis for doing so.

Responding to enquiries

We use contact, business and correspondence information to:

respond to questions;
provide information about our services;
discuss potential requirements; and
prepare proposals or quotations.

We normally rely on our legitimate interests in responding to enquiries and developing our business. Where an enquiry relates to a possible contract with you, we may also process information to take steps before entering into that contract.

Managing client and supplier relationships

We use personal information to:

establish and manage commercial relationships;
negotiate and administer contracts;
deliver services;
manage projects and assignments;
process invoices and payments;
maintain business records; and
communicate with relevant contacts.

We rely on contractual necessity where you are personally a party to the contract, our legitimate business interests and our legal obligations.

Providing consultancy services

We may process personal information to:

understand a client’s requirements;
provide commercial and contract-management services;
manage delivery and governance;
prepare advice, reports and other work products;
communicate with client personnel, suppliers and stakeholders; and
maintain records of decisions, actions and project activities.

We rely on our contractual obligations, legitimate interests and applicable legal obligations.

Recruiting and engaging candidates and associates

We use candidate and associate information to:

identify and assess relevant skills and experience;
consider suitability for roles and assignments;
communicate about opportunities;
verify information and obtain references;
present suitable individuals to prospective clients;
agree contractual and commercial arrangements;
carry out onboarding and compliance checks; and
maintain a professional network of people who may be suitable for future work.

We rely on steps taken before entering into a contract, contractual necessity, legal obligations and our legitimate interests in finding and engaging suitable expertise.

Managing employment and working relationships

We use employee and worker information to:

manage employment contracts and working arrangements;
administer payroll, tax, pension and benefits;
record leave, absence and working time;
provide training and manage performance;
manage health, safety and reasonable adjustments;
deal with grievances, disciplinary matters and complaints;
meet legal and regulatory responsibilities; and
establish, exercise or defend legal claims.

We rely on contractual necessity, legal obligations and our legitimate interests in managing our business and workforce.

Where special-category information is involved, we also identify an additional condition permitted under data protection law.

Managing associate and contractor assignments

We use assignment information to:

agree and manage statements of work;
administer timesheets, expenses, invoices and payments;
monitor delivery against agreed requirements;
manage client communications and feedback;
meet tax, employment-status, insurance and reporting obligations;
address health, safety and workplace requirements; and
manage changes, concerns, complaints or disputes.

We rely on contractual necessity, legal obligations and legitimate interests.

Business administration and governance

We process information to:

maintain accounting and tax records;
manage insurance arrangements;
assess and manage commercial risks;
carry out internal governance and compliance checks;
protect confidential information and business assets;
manage complaints, incidents, disputes and legal claims;
prevent and investigate fraud or misuse; and
meet requirements imposed by courts, regulators or public authorities.

We rely on legal obligations and our legitimate interests in operating and protecting the business.

Website operation and security

We may use technical and usage information to:

operate and maintain the website;
protect the website and our systems;
investigate security events;
understand website performance; and
improve website content and usability.

We rely on legitimate interests for essential operation, security and basic service improvement. Where consent is legally required for cookies or similar technologies, we rely on consent.

Business development and marketing

We may use business contact information to:

maintain professional relationships;
provide information about our services and expertise;
share articles, insights and invitations;
identify organisations that may benefit from our services; and
follow up on previous enquiries, meetings or professional contact.

We rely on our legitimate interests where this is permitted by law. We obtain consent where consent is legally required.

You may object to direct marketing or unsubscribe at any time.

Legal and regulatory requirements

We may process or disclose information where necessary to:

comply with applicable laws;
respond to a court order or lawful request;
cooperate with a regulator or law-enforcement authority;
protect the rights, safety or property of Clear or another person;
investigate suspected fraud or unlawful conduct; or
establish, exercise or defend a legal claim.

We rely on legal obligations, legitimate interests and, where applicable, the legal-claims conditions available under data protection law.

7. Our legitimate interests

Where we rely on legitimate interests, those interests may include:

operating and developing a professional consultancy business;
responding to enquiries;
developing and maintaining client and professional relationships;
identifying suitable expertise for client requirements;
recruiting and managing our workforce and associate network;
delivering and improving our services;
maintaining accurate commercial and governance records;
managing business and contractual risks;
protecting our systems, information and business;
preventing fraud and misuse;
managing complaints, disputes and insurance matters; and
communicating relevant services and professional information to business contacts.

Before relying on legitimate interests, we consider whether the processing is necessary and proportionate and whether your rights or interests override our interests.

8. Business communications and marketing

We may contact professional and business contacts about Clear’s services, expertise, articles, events or other matters that we reasonably believe may be relevant to their role or organisation.

We may use information:

provided directly by you;
arising from an existing or previous professional relationship;
received through a professional introduction; or
obtained from an appropriate publicly available professional source.

We comply with applicable data protection and electronic marketing requirements. Where consent is required, we will seek consent before sending the communication.

You may opt out of marketing communications at any time by:

using the unsubscribe option in the communication; or
emailing [email protected].

After an objection or unsubscribe request, we may retain a limited suppression record so that we can respect your preference.

9. Who we share personal information with

Where necessary and lawful, we may share information with:

existing and prospective clients;
directors, employees and authorised associates who need the information for their work;
recruitment agencies, umbrella companies and other authorised intermediaries;
payroll, pension and benefits providers;
accountants, auditors and tax advisers;
legal advisers and other professional advisers;
insurers, insurance brokers and claims handlers;
banks and payment providers;
IT support, email, cloud-storage, website-hosting, communications and security providers;
customer relationship management and business administration providers;
identity, right-to-work, reference and background-check providers;
HM Revenue & Customs, Companies House, regulators, courts, law-enforcement bodies and other public authorities;
parties involved in a complaint, investigation, dispute or legal claim;
potential purchasers, investors or professional advisers in connection with a proposed business sale, investment, restructuring or transfer; and
another organisation where you have asked us to share the information or where we are legally permitted or required to do so.

When we provide candidate or associate information to a client, that client may become an independent data controller for its subsequent use of the information.

Service providers processing personal information on our behalf are required to use it only for the agreed purpose and to apply appropriate confidentiality and security measures.

We do not sell personal information.

10. International transfers

Some of our technology or service providers may store information outside the UK or allow authorised access to it from another country.

Where this constitutes a restricted international transfer, we use a transfer arrangement permitted under UK data protection law. This may include:

a UK adequacy regulation;
an approved contractual transfer mechanism; or
another legally recognised safeguard.

We also consider whether additional contractual, technical or organisational protections are appropriate.

You may contact our Privacy Lead for further information about the safeguards applying to a particular transfer.

11. How long we keep personal information

We retain personal information for as long as it is reasonably required for the purpose for which it was collected and for any related lawful purpose.

When determining how long information should be retained, we consider:

the nature, volume and sensitivity of the information;
the purpose for which it is held;
whether that purpose remains current;
the duration of our relationship, contract or engagement;
applicable legal, tax, accounting and regulatory requirements;
contractual and client requirements;
relevant professional, insurance and legal limitation periods;
whether the information may be required for an audit, complaint, investigation, dispute or legal claim;
the individual’s reasonable expectations;
the risks associated with continued retention;
whether retaining the information remains necessary and proportionate; and
whether the information can instead be securely deleted, destroyed or anonymised.

Information may be retained for longer where:

a complaint, investigation, insurance matter, dispute or legal claim is ongoing or reasonably anticipated;
a legal hold applies;
a contract requires continued retention;
an insurer requires the information;
retention is required by law, a court, a regulator or another public authority; or
there is another documented and lawful reason for continuing to retain it.

We keep the information we hold under review. Where information is no longer reasonably required and there is no legal, contractual or other justified reason to retain it, we will securely delete, destroy or anonymise it.

Information held in secure backup systems may remain for a limited period until it is overwritten or deleted through the normal backup cycle. During that period, it will not ordinarily be used for another purpose.

12. When you are required to provide information

Some personal information is required so that we can:

enter into or perform a contract;
assess you for a role or assignment;
verify identity or right-to-work status;
meet tax, accounting, employment, health and safety or other legal obligations;
meet reasonable client onboarding requirements;
obtain or maintain insurance;
make or receive payments; or
provide the requested service.

Where required information is not provided, we may be unable to:

enter into or continue a contract;
offer or continue an employment or associate engagement;
submit you for a client opportunity;
make a payment;
meet a client requirement; or
provide the requested service.

We will explain where providing particular information is mandatory.

13. Automated decision-making

We do not currently make decisions about individuals based solely on automated processing where those decisions produce legal or similarly significant effects.

We may use systems to organise, search, compare or support the review of information, but material decisions about candidates, associates, employees, clients and business contacts involve human judgement.

We will update this notice if this changes.

14. Cookies and similar technologies

Information about the cookies and similar technologies used through our website, including their purpose and duration, is provided through our Cookie Policy and website cookie settings.

Technologies that are strictly necessary may be used to operate, transmit or secure the website.

Where consent is legally required for another technology, it will not be used unless the required consent has been obtained.

You can use the website cookie settings to review or change your choices. Withdrawing consent will not affect the lawfulness of processing that took place before consent was withdrawn.

15. How we protect personal information

We use proportionate technical and organisational measures designed to protect personal information against:

unauthorised access;
accidental loss;
inappropriate use or disclosure;
alteration;
destruction; and
other unlawful processing.

The measures used will depend on the nature of the information and the risks involved. They may include:

access restrictions;
account and device security;
secure storage and transfer arrangements;
confidentiality obligations;
staff guidance and training;
data backup;
supplier checks and contractual controls;
incident-response procedures; and
secure deletion and disposal arrangements.

Access to personal information is limited to people who require it for an authorised purpose.

No internet or information-storage system can be guaranteed to be completely secure. However, we maintain arrangements for responding to suspected personal-data breaches.

Where required by law, we will notify the Information Commissioner’s Office and affected individuals.

16. Your data protection rights

Depending on the circumstances and the lawful basis applying to the processing, you may have the right to:

ask whether we process your personal information;
request access to your personal information;
ask us to correct inaccurate or incomplete information;
ask us to erase information;
ask us to restrict the use of information;
receive certain information in a portable format;
object to particular uses of your information;
withdraw consent where we rely on consent; and
request human intervention where a qualifying decision is made solely through automated processing.

These rights are not absolute. An exemption may apply, or we may need to retain or continue using information to comply with a legal obligation or to establish, exercise or defend a legal claim.

We may ask for information reasonably required to confirm your identity and understand your request.

There is normally no charge for exercising your rights. We will respond without undue delay and within the period required by law.

Requests should be sent to: [email protected]

Your right to object

You have the right to object at any time to the use of your personal information for direct marketing.

You may also object where we rely on legitimate interests.

Where you object to processing based on legitimate interests, we will stop the relevant processing unless:

we can demonstrate compelling legitimate grounds that override your interests, rights and freedoms; or
the processing is required to establish, exercise or defend a legal claim.

17. Data protection complaints

You may complain to us if you are concerned about:

how we have collected or used your information;
the accuracy or security of your information;
a disclosure of your information;
how we have dealt with a data protection request; or
any other aspect of our compliance with data protection law.

Complaints should be sent to:

Privacy Lead
Clear Consulting Group Ltd
24 Nicholas Street
Chester
CH1 2AU

Email: [email protected]

We will:

provide a clear route for raising the complaint;
acknowledge the complaint within 30 days;
investigate it appropriately and without undue delay;
request further information where reasonably required;
keep you informed about progress where appropriate; and
explain the outcome of our investigation.

You also have the right to complain to the Information Commissioner’s Office. You do not have to complete our complaints process before contacting the ICO.

The Information Commissioner’s Office can be contacted at:

Information Commissioner’s Office
Wycliffe House
Water Lane
Wilmslow
Cheshire
SK9 5AF

Telephone: 0303 123 1113

Contact and complaints information is also available through the ICO’s website.

18. Children’s information

Our website and services are intended for business and professional users and are not directed at children.

We do not knowingly collect personal information from children through our website.

Where information relating to a child is processed in connection with a client engagement, employment matter or another legitimate activity, we will process it only where necessary and lawful and will apply appropriate safeguards.

Where we act solely on a client’s instructions, the client’s privacy information may also apply.

19. Third-party websites

Our website may contain links to websites operated by other organisations.

We are not responsible for the privacy practices or content of those websites. You should review the relevant organisation’s privacy notice before providing personal information.

20. Changes to this privacy notice

We may update this privacy notice to reflect changes in:

our services and business activities;
the information we process;
our systems and service providers; or
legal and regulatory requirements.

The latest version will be published on our website and will show the date on which it was last updated.

Where a change is significant, we may also provide a separate notice where appropriate.

21. Contact us

For questions, requests or complaints relating to personal information, please contact:

Privacy Lead
Clear Consulting Group Ltd
24 Nicholas Street
Chester
CH1 2AU

Email: [email protected]