1. Who we are
The 15 is the controller of the personal data described in this policy.
Our data protection contact is hello@the15.co.uk.
Contact us about your data at hello@the15.co.uk.
2. Who this policy covers
- Candidates and contractors we approach about a specific role.
- People at our clients and prospective clients.
- Referees whose details candidates give us.
- Recruitment firms we partner with.
- Visitors to the15.co.uk.
3. What we collect
Candidates and contractors
- We do not accept speculative CVs or run a candidate database. We only collect candidate data for a live role.
- Contact details: name, email, phone, location.
- Your CV, work history, skills, qualifications and professional profiles.
- Salary, notice period, availability and the kind of role you want.
- Notes from our conversations and interviews, and the profile we write about you.
- A record of every introduction you agreed to, and every client that received your profile.
- Identity verification and right-to-work results: the status, the date and the provider's reference. We do not keep copies of your identity documents.
- If you are a contractor: payment details, your company or umbrella company details, and information needed for tax and IR35.
- Health information only if you tell us you need adjustments, and only to arrange them.
Clients
- Business contact details of the people we deal with.
- Information about the roles you are hiring for.
- Billing details.
Website visitors
- Our site does not use analytics or advertising tools.
- Our hosting provider, Cloudflare, processes your IP address and technical data to keep the site secure. See our Cookie Policy.
- If you contact us, we receive whatever you choose to send.
4. Where we get it
- From you.
- From people who refer you to us.
- From public professional profiles, such as LinkedIn, when we search for people for a role.
- From recruitment firms we partner with, with your agreement.
- From referees and our identity verification provider.
If we collect your data from someone other than you, we will tell you within one month and give you this policy.
5. Why we use it, and our lawful basis
| Purpose | Lawful basis |
|---|---|
| Finding you suitable roles and assessing your fit | Legitimate interests |
| Introducing you to a client | Legitimate interests. We also ask your agreement before every introduction |
| Verifying identity and right to work | Legal obligation and contract |
| Paying contractors and handling tax and IR35 | Contract and legal obligation |
| Keeping records the Conduct Regulations require | Legal obligation |
| Managing client relationships and invoicing | Contract and legitimate interests |
| Arranging adjustments for health reasons | Your explicit consent |
Where we rely on legitimate interests, our interest is running a recruitment business that matches the right people to the right roles. We have balanced that against your rights. You can object at any time.
6. No automated decisions
We do not make decisions about people using automated processing.
We do not use AI or software to screen, score, rank or reject candidates.
A person makes every decision about who we introduce.
7. Who we share it with
- Clients, only after you agree to be introduced to them for a specific role.
- Recruitment firms we partner with, only after you agree.
- Our identity verification provider.
- Payroll providers, umbrella companies and accountants, for contractors.
- Our IT providers, including our email, website hosting and website form providers.
- Professional advisers, such as lawyers and accountants.
- HMRC, regulators or the police, where the law requires it.
We never sell personal data.
8. International transfers
Some of our IT providers may process data outside the UK.
Where they do, we rely on UK adequacy regulations or the International Data Transfer Agreement or Addendum approved by the ICO.
9. How long we keep it
| Data | How long |
|---|---|
| Candidates we have not placed | 2 years from our last meaningful contact |
| Candidates and contractors we have placed | 6 years from the end of the placement or Assignment |
| Verification status, date and reference | 2 years from the end of the placement or Assignment |
| Client contacts and invoices | 6 years from the end of our relationship |
| Website security logs | As set by Cloudflare, usually days |
We then delete or anonymise it.
10. Your rights
You have the right to:
- access the personal data we hold about you;
- have inaccurate data corrected;
- have your data deleted;
- restrict how we use your data;
- object to our use of your data, including for legitimate interests;
- receive your data in a portable format; and
- withdraw consent at any time, where we rely on it.
Email hello@the15.co.uk to use any of these rights. It is free. We reply within one month. See Data protection and your rights for more.
11. Keeping it safe
We limit access to people who need it, use secure, access-controlled systems, and train our consultants on data protection.
12. Complaints
If you are unhappy with how we handle your data, please tell us first at hello@the15.co.uk.
You can also complain to the Information Commissioner's Office at ico.org.uk or on 0303 123 1113.
13. Changes
We will post any changes here and update the date at the top of this page.
Contact: hello@the15.co.uk.