Candidate Terms of Business

Who this document is for

These Terms of Business apply to candidates - individuals who register on the Restart Talent platform to showcase their professional profile and be discovered by employers. Using the platform is completely free for candidates. If you are an employer or hiring company looking to find and hire talent, please refer to the Client Terms of Business instead, available at www.restarttalent.co.uk/legal.

Please read these Terms carefully before registering These Terms of Business ("Terms") govern your use of the Restart Talent platform as a candidate. By creating an account and submitting your profile, you confirm that you are at least 18 years of age, that you have read and understood these Terms, and that you agree to be bound by them. If you do not agree, please do not register. Using this platform is entirely free for candidates - there are no fees, subscriptions, or hidden charges now or in the future.

1. Definitions

In these Terms, the following definitions apply:

2. About Restart Talent

2.1 Restart Talent is a direct hiring platform built for candidates who want to do more than submit a CV. Unlike traditional job boards and recruitment agencies, Restart Talent gives you a rich, verified professional showcase that puts you in front of employers on your own terms - with full control over what they see and when.

2.2 You are not applying for jobs. You are building a professional presence. Employers come to you - browsing, discovering, and unlocking the candidates they want to speak to. You decide how much you reveal and to whom.

2.3 Key facts about how the Platform works for candidates:

• Using the Platform is completely free for candidates - there are no charges now or at any point in the future.
• Restart Talent is funded entirely by Employers. When an Employer successfully hires a candidate through the Platform, they pay Restart Talent a success fee. This is how the Platform is sustained - and why it is, and always will be, completely free for you.
• Your Profile is created to be found. Once verified and active, it is discoverable by all verified Employers on the Platform.
• Employers can see your name and professional profile before spending any credits. Your contact details, photographs, and introduction video are only revealed after an Employer pays to unlock your profile.
• Your Supporting Documents are locked at all times and can only be seen by an Employer you individually and explicitly choose to share them with - one document at a time.
• All content you submit is reviewed and approved by our admin team before your Profile goes live.
• You are in control. You can update, deactivate, or delete your Profile at any time.

Not a job board. Not a recruiter. Something better. Restart Talent sits in a category of its own. Think of it as your professional showcase - more powerful than a CV, more personal than LinkedIn, more direct than any recruitment agency. You upload everything that makes you hireable: your experience, your projects, your work, your credentials, your story. Employers find you, unlock your details, and speak to you directly. No middlemen. No noise.

3. Eligibility and Registration

3.1 To register as a candidate on the Platform, you must:

• Be at least 18 years of age;
• Be a genuine individual seeking employment, contract work, freelance opportunities, or other legitimate work engagements;
• Provide accurate, truthful, and complete information at registration and at all times thereafter;
• Not be subject to any legal prohibition or court order preventing you from seeking the type of employment you are pursuing;
• Not have been previously removed from the Platform for a breach of these Terms.

3.2 You may only hold one active candidate account on the Platform. Creating multiple accounts is a breach of these Terms and may result in permanent removal.

3.3 By registering, you confirm that all eligibility criteria above are met. We reserve the right to verify your eligibility at any time and to suspend or remove accounts where criteria are not satisfied.

3.4 You are responsible for keeping your login credentials confidential. You must notify us immediately at legal@restarttalent.co.uk if you suspect any unauthorised access to your account.

4. Building Your Profile - Your Professional Showcase

4.1 What your Profile is for

Your Profile is your professional presence on the Platform. It is designed to give Employers a complete, compelling picture of who you are, what you can do, and what you have achieved - far beyond what a standard CV can convey. You are encouraged to make it as rich, detailed, and authentic as possible.

4.2 What you can include in your Profile

Your Profile can include any of the following - the more comprehensive it is, the more likely you are to be discovered by the right Employers:

4.3 There is no upper limit on what you can upload. Restart Talent is built for candidates who want to showcase everything - your skills, your work, your personality, and your professional story. Go beyond the CV.

4.4 Supporting Documents - required and optional

In addition to your Showcase Content, you may upload Supporting Documents. These are stored separately and are locked to all Employers by default. No Employer can access these documents unless you take the deliberate step of releasing them individually.

What is required to go live Two documents are required before your profile can be verified and go live: a valid proof of identity and your CV. This is so we can confirm you are who you say you are and that your profile is genuine. Everything else is entirely optional - the more you upload, the stronger your profile, but nothing beyond proof of identity is mandatory.

• Proof of identity (e.g. passport, driving licence, national identity card) - REQUIRED
• Proof of address (e.g. utility bill, bank statement) - optional
• Right-to-work documentation - optional
• DBS (Disclosure and Barring Service) certificate - optional, only if you choose to upload one
• Professional reference letters and testimonials - optional
• Educational degree certificates and transcripts - optional
• Professional qualification certificates and licence documents - optional
• Any other document you wish to make available to employers you are actively engaging with - optional

You control every document release Releasing a Supporting Document to one Employer does not release it to any other Employer. Every release is a separate, individual act that only you can initiate. We recommend only releasing sensitive documents - such as proof of identity, proof of address, or your DBS certificate - when you are confident you are at an advanced stage of a hiring process with that Employer.

4.5 Introduction video and photographs

You may upload an introduction video and professional photographs to enhance your Profile. These are a powerful way to present yourself beyond words. They are stored securely and are only revealed to an Employer once they have paid to unlock your profile - they are never visible during anonymous browsing.

If you wish to remove your photographs or introduction video, you must do so yourself via your account settings. We do not remove this content automatically. You should be aware that once an Employer has unlocked your profile and viewed your photos or video, removing the content from the Platform does not affect what they have already seen.

5. Verification - How Your Profile Goes Live

5.1 Restart Talent operates a mandatory verification process. Your Profile will not appear in Employer search results until our admin team has reviewed and approved all content and documents you have submitted. To be verified and go live, you must have uploaded a valid proof of identity. All other Supporting Documents are optional. This ensures the integrity of the Platform and gives Employers confidence in every candidate they find.

5.2 During verification, our team will:

• Confirm that a valid proof of identity has been provided and that the name on the document matches the name registered on your profile - this is required before your profile can go live;
• Review all profile information for completeness and plausibility;
• Cross-check any other uploaded documents against the information on your profile to confirm they are consistent;
• Review your CV and Showcase Content for authenticity and consistency with your profile;
• Review your introduction video and photographs to confirm they meet our content standards;
• Reject your profile or any individual document if there is a discrepancy or if content does not meet our standards - you will be notified with the specific reason.

5.3 It is important that you understand what our verification does and does not cover:

• We confirm that your documents appear consistent with your profile information - this is a consistency check, not an independent authentication of your documents;
• We do not use third-party identity verification services, biometric checks, or document authentication tools;
• We do not contact your previous employers, educational institutions, professional bodies, or referees as part of our review;
• Our verification is not a legal background check, criminal records check, right-to-work verification, or endorsement of your suitability for any particular role;
• Passing our verification process does not guarantee that employers will not carry out their own independent checks - they will. Employers are legally required to conduct their own right-to-work checks, reference checks, and other pre-employment verification before making a hire, regardless of what we have reviewed.

5.4 We reserve the right to reject a Profile, request additional information, or remove any content that does not meet our standards - including content that is inaccurate, misleading, inappropriate, or in breach of these Terms. If your Profile or any documents are rejected, we will notify you with a clear explanation of the reason and what is required to address it. You may resubmit your Profile or documents once the necessary changes have been made. Your Profile will not go live until all submitted content meets our standards and has been fully approved.

5.5 Once your Profile is verified and approved, it will go live and become discoverable by all verified Employers on the Platform.

Verification is not instant Our admin team reviews every profile manually before it goes live. You must have uploaded a valid proof of identity before your profile can be approved - this is the only mandatory document. Once all your content and documents have been submitted and are in order, approval typically takes up to 2 working days. If anything does not meet our standards - for example, your identity document is unclear, expired, or the name does not match your profile - we will notify you with the specific reason and what needs to be changed. You can then resubmit, and the 2 working day review window will apply from the point your updated submission is received. You will receive a notification once your profile has been fully approved and is live.

6. Profile Visibility and the Unlock System

6.1 Your Profile operates on a tiered visibility model designed to protect your privacy while maximising your discoverability:

6.2 You consent to the above visibility model by registering on the Platform and keeping your Profile active. You can withdraw your Profile from discovery at any time by setting it to inactive via your account settings.

6.3 When an Employer views your Profile, you will receive a real-time notification showing the Employer's company name. This allows you to see who is interested in you.

6.4 When an Employer spends a credit to unlock your Profile, you will also receive an instant notification. This is so you are always aware of which Employers have accessed your contact details and are likely to be in touch.

7. Accuracy, Honesty, and Your Responsibilities

7.1 You are solely responsible for the accuracy, completeness, and legality of all content, information, and documents you upload to the Platform.

7.2 You must not upload or include anything that is:

• False, fabricated, misleading, or exaggerated - including fake qualifications, invented job titles, or falsified employment history;
• A forged, altered, or fraudulent document of any kind;
• Defamatory about any person or organisation, including previous employers, colleagues, or clients;
• Content belonging to someone else without their permission;
• Defamatory, offensive, discriminatory, sexually explicit, or otherwise unlawful;
• Designed to impersonate another person;
• In breach of any third party's intellectual property, privacy, or other rights.

7.3 You must keep your Profile up to date. If your circumstances change materially - for example, if you are no longer available for work, have accepted a position, or your qualifications change - you must update your Profile promptly or set it to inactive.

7.4 Uploading fraudulent documents - including forged passports, fake certificates, falsified DBS checks, or fabricated references - is a serious breach of these Terms and may constitute a criminal offence. We reserve the right to report such conduct to the relevant authorities, including the police and the Disclosure and Barring Service.

We take authenticity seriously Every profile on Restart Talent has been reviewed by a real person before it goes live. This is our promise to Employers - and it means we take a zero-tolerance approach to dishonesty. If you misrepresent yourself, your qualifications, or your documents, your account will be permanently removed and the matter may be referred to the appropriate authorities.

8. Acceptable Use of the Platform

8.1 You may use the Platform solely for the purpose of seeking legitimate employment, contract, or freelance work opportunities, and to showcase your professional profile to prospective Employers.

8.2 You must not use the Platform to:

• Create more than one candidate account;
• Register as an Employer in order to access or browse other candidates' profiles - this constitutes a serious breach and will result in permanent removal of both accounts;
• Advertise products, services, or your own business for commercial purposes unrelated to your own employment;
• Collect, scrape, or harvest information about other users;
• Attempt to gain unauthorised access to any part of the Platform or its systems;
• Introduce any virus, malware, ransomware, or harmful code;
• Circumvent any security feature, content moderation mechanism, or access control;
• Send unsolicited commercial messages to Employers or other users;
• Misuse the messaging system for any purpose other than genuine employment-related communication;
• Take any action that could damage, overload, or impair the Platform's infrastructure.

9. Content Standards and Moderation

9.1 All content you upload to the Platform - including your introduction video, photographs, portfolio pieces, and any documents - must meet our content standards. Content must:

• Be professional and appropriate for a recruitment context;
• Not contain nudity, sexually explicit material, or gratuitously offensive imagery;
• Not depict violence, illegal activity, or content that could cause harm or distress;
• Not infringe the copyright, trademark, or intellectual property rights of any third party;
• Not contain personal data of third parties without their consent (for example, do not include colleagues' names or contact details in project uploads without permission).

9.2 Restart Talent reserves the right to review, remove, or require amendment of any content that does not meet these standards, without prior notice. We will notify you if content is removed and explain why.

9.3 Removal of content by us does not automatically result in account suspension unless the content constitutes a serious breach of these Terms. Repeated breaches of content standards will result in account suspension or permanent removal.

9.4 If you upload content that you did not create yourself - such as project work completed as part of a team or under an employer - you are responsible for ensuring you have the right to share it. If in doubt, seek permission from the relevant party before uploading.

10. Messaging, Interview Links, and In-App Communications

10.1 Once an Employer has unlocked your profile, they may contact you directly through the Platform's in-app messaging system. You are under no obligation to respond to any message.

10.2 Employers may also send you interview links and share documents through the messaging system. All Employers on the Platform have been verified by Restart Talent, but you should still exercise care - only open links and download documents from Employers you recognise from your Platform activity and are actively engaging with.

10.3 You may also upload and share documents within messaging threads - for example, additional work samples or references. By sharing a document in a message thread, you consent to that Employer accessing it.

10.4 All communications through the Platform must be professional, respectful, and lawful. You must not use the messaging system to:

• Harass, threaten, or intimidate any Employer or other user;
• Solicit money, gifts, or personal favours from Employers;
• Share or request personal data beyond what is necessary for the recruitment process;
• Conduct any activity that is illegal or in breach of these Terms.

10.5 We reserve the right to monitor messaging activity on the Platform for the purposes of safety, fraud prevention, and ensuring compliance with these Terms, in accordance with our Privacy Notice.

11. Reporting Employers and Safety

11.1 Your safety and wellbeing on the Platform is important to us. If you receive a message from an Employer that is inappropriate, offensive, harassing, or makes you feel uncomfortable, you should report it to us immediately.

11.2 To report an Employer, contact us at legal@restarttalent.co.uk with the following information:

• The name of the Employer you are reporting;
• A description of the behaviour or communication that concerned you;
• Any screenshots or message records that support your report.

11.3 We treat all reports as a matter of urgency. Upon receipt of a report, we will:

• Acknowledge your report within 1 business day;
• Conduct a thorough investigation of the Employer's conduct on the Platform;
• Take appropriate action, which may include issuing a warning, restricting the Employer's access, or permanently removing the Employer from the Platform;
• Keep you informed of the outcome of the investigation, subject to any confidentiality considerations.

11.4 Blocking and reporting functionality will be built into the Platform in a future update, allowing you to block specific Employers directly within the app. Until this feature is available, please report concerns by email as described above.

11.5 All Employers on the Platform have been verified by Restart Talent as legitimate registered businesses before being granted access to candidate profiles. However, verification confirms business registration - it does not guarantee the conduct or intentions of every individual within an organisation. With this in mind:

• You should only disclose sensitive personal documents - such as proof of identity, proof of address, or your DBS certificate - once you have gone through an interview or a phone call and have been formally told that you are moving forward in the hiring process and that the documents are required as part of that next step.
• If an Employer asks you to do anything that feels dishonest, illegal, or unethical - including asking you to commit fraud, falsify documents, or misrepresent yourself in any way - you must report this to us immediately at legal@restarttalent.co.uk. Do not comply with any such request.
• If an Employer asks you not to disclose your hire, your contract, or any aspect of your engagement with them to Restart Talent - whether verbally, in writing, or through the Platform - you must report this to us immediately. Asking a candidate to conceal a hire is a serious breach of the Employer's obligations to Restart Talent and may constitute fraud.
• If you are ever asked to pay money to an Employer as a condition of employment or to progress your application, do not make any payment and report it to us immediately at legal@restarttalent.co.uk.

12. Hire Confirmation

12.1 Restart Talent charges Employers a success fee when a hire is made through the Platform - this is how the Platform is funded and kept free for candidates. To ensure this is accurately recorded, we ask candidates to confirm when they have accepted a permanent job offer, a fixed-term contract, or a freelance or contractor engagement from an Employer they connected with through Restart Talent. This is made as simple as possible - your candidate dashboard includes a prompt that allows you to upload a copy of your signed contract or offer letter. That is all that is required from you. There are no forms to complete and no further action needed beyond uploading the document via the dashboard prompt.

12.2 You may be contacted about your hire or engagement by the Employer via the Platform, by email, by phone, or through other channels. Regardless of how you are contacted or how the offer is communicated, if you accept any role or engagement from an Employer you were connected with through Restart Talent, we ask that you notify us by uploading your contract or offer letter through your dashboard.

12.3 You should submit your Hire Confirmation promptly - ideally within 5 business days of formally accepting the offer or signing the contract.

12.4 Hire Confirmation has no financial consequence for you as a candidate. The success fee is charged entirely to the Employer. Your confirmation simply allows us to verify the engagement and process the Employer's fee accurately.

12.5 If you are unsure whether a particular offer or engagement triggers a Hire Confirmation obligation, or if you are unable to upload your contract for any reason, contact us at legal@restarttalent.co.uk and we will assist you.

Hire Confirmation - your only obligation on success Restart Talent is free for candidates because Employers pay a success fee when a hire is made. The only thing we ask of you when that happens is to upload your contract or offer letter via the prompt on your dashboard. It takes under a minute, costs you nothing, and has no consequence for you. It simply allows us to verify the engagement, process the Employer's fee, and keep the platform free for every candidate.

13. Active Profile, Inactive Profile, and Account Deletion

13.1 Keeping your Profile up to date

You are responsible for ensuring your Profile accurately reflects your current situation. If you have found a job, accepted an offer, signed a contract, or taken on a freelance or contractor engagement and are no longer actively looking for work, you should set your Profile to inactive or update it accordingly as soon as reasonably practicable.

13.2 Setting your Profile to inactive

You can set your Profile to inactive at any time via your account settings. When your Profile is inactive:

• It is immediately removed from Employer search results and is no longer discoverable;
• All your profile data, documents, and content are retained securely and can be reactivated at any time;
• Existing messaging threads with Employers who have already unlocked your profile remain accessible;
• You will not receive new profile view notifications while inactive.

You can reactivate your Profile at any time. Reactivation may require re-verification by our admin team if significant time has passed or if you have made material changes to your Profile.

13.3 Deleting your account

You may delete your account permanently at any time via your account settings or by contacting us at legal@restarttalent.co.uk. Before completing account deletion, you will be shown a clear warning that:

• Your Profile will be permanently and irreversibly removed from the Platform;
• All your uploaded content, documents, and Showcase Content will be deleted - this cannot be undone;
• Your full messaging history will be permanently lost - you will no longer be able to access any conversations you have had with Employers through the Platform;
• Any document releases you have made to specific Employers are not affected - documents already shared remain with those Employers under their own data controller responsibilities.

Account deletion is permanent. If you wish to return to the Platform after deleting your account, you will need to register afresh and rebuild your Profile from scratch.

Following account deletion, your personal data will be deleted or anonymised within 90 days in accordance with our Privacy Notice.

14. Intellectual Property

14.1 You retain full ownership of all content, documents, and materials you upload to your Profile. Nothing in these Terms transfers ownership of your content to Restart Talent.

14.2 By uploading content to the Platform, you grant Restart Talent a non-exclusive, royalty-free, worldwide licence to store, display, process, and share that content with Employers in accordance with these Terms and our Privacy Notice. This licence is strictly limited to what is necessary to operate the Platform - Restart Talent will not use your content for any other commercial purpose, including advertising, marketing materials, or third-party promotions, without your separate and explicit written consent.

14.3 This licence terminates automatically when you delete the relevant content or close your account, subject to any data retention obligations in our Privacy Notice.

14.4 You warrant that you have the right to upload all content you submit to the Platform and that doing so does not infringe any third party's intellectual property, privacy, or other rights. You agree to indemnify Restart Talent against any claim arising from a breach of this warranty.

14.5 All Platform technology, software, design, branding, trademarks, and proprietary content are owned by or licensed to Restart Talent Ltd and are protected by applicable intellectual property laws. You have no right to copy, reproduce, modify, or distribute any Platform intellectual property.

15. Privacy and Your Personal Data

15.1 Restart Talent Ltd is the Data Controller in respect of your personal data. Our Privacy Notice, which forms part of these Terms and sets out in full how we collect, use, store, and share your data, is available at www.restarttalent.co.uk/privacy.

15.2 By registering and using the Platform, you acknowledge that you have read and understood our Privacy Notice.

15.3 Key points relevant to your use of the Platform as a candidate:

• Your initials, professional profile information (excluding references), and CV with name redacted are visible to all verified Employers - your full name is only revealed after a paid unlock. Your CV is visible before unlock but your name is automatically redacted on it;
• Your contact details, photographs, and introduction video are only shared with an Employer who pays to unlock your profile;
• Your Supporting Documents are only shared when you individually and explicitly choose to release them;
• You have the right to access, correct, delete, and port your personal data at any time - contact privacy@restarttalent.co.uk;
• You can withdraw your consent to data processing by deactivating your profile or deleting your account.

16. Suspension and Termination

16.1 We reserve the right to suspend or permanently remove your account at any time, without prior notice, if we reasonably believe that you have:

• Uploaded false, fraudulent, forged, or misleading documents or information;
• Misrepresented your skills, qualifications, experience, or identity;
• Engaged in abusive, threatening, or harassing behaviour toward any Employer or Restart Talent staff;
• Used the Platform for any unlawful purpose;
• Breached any provision of these Terms;
• Created multiple candidate accounts or registered as an Employer to access candidate profiles;
• Uploaded content that violates our content standards;
• Knowingly failed to submit a Hire Confirmation after accepting a role, contract, or engagement from an Employer connected through the Platform;
• Attempted to conceal a hire or engagement from Restart Talent at an Employer's request or otherwise;
• Taken any action that damages or threatens the integrity, reputation, or security of the Platform.

16.2 Where the breach is capable of being remedied, we may - at our discretion - notify you and give you a reasonable opportunity to remedy it before taking action.

16.3 On suspension or termination, your Profile will be immediately removed from discovery. If your account is suspended rather than permanently removed, you may contact us at legal@restarttalent.co.uk to appeal the decision.

16.4 Permanent removal is reserved for serious breaches - particularly fraudulent documents, criminal conduct, persistent abusive behaviour, concealment of a hire, or repeated violations. A permanently removed account cannot be reinstated.

16.5 On account termination, your personal data will be handled in accordance with our Privacy Notice. Your data will be deleted or anonymised within 90 days of termination unless we are legally required to retain specific records for a longer period.

17. Disclaimer and Limitation of Liability

17.1 No guarantee of employment

Restart Talent provides a platform that facilitates connections between candidates and Employers. We do not guarantee that creating a Profile will result in any profile views, unlocks, messages, interview invitations, or job offers. Employment outcomes depend entirely on the decisions of individual Employers.

17.2 No endorsement of Employers

We verify that Employers on the Platform are registered businesses. However, we do not vet, endorse, or take responsibility for the conduct, integrity, financial standing, or hiring intentions of any individual Employer. You are responsible for conducting your own due diligence before accepting any offer or sharing sensitive information with an Employer outside the Platform.

17.3 Platform availability

We aim to provide a reliable and continuously available Platform. However, we do not warrant that the Platform will be uninterrupted or error-free. We reserve the right to suspend or restrict access for maintenance, upgrades, or emergency repairs at any time.

17.4 Limitation of liability

17.4.1 To the fullest extent permitted by applicable law, Restart Talent shall not be liable for any indirect, incidental, consequential, or special damages arising from your use of, or inability to use, the Platform.

17.4.2 Our total aggregate liability to you in connection with any claim arising under these Terms shall not exceed £100 (one hundred pounds sterling).

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

18. Changes to These Terms

18.1 We may update these Terms from time to time. When we make material changes we will notify you by email and by displaying a prominent notice on the Platform at least 14 days before the changes take effect.

18.2 Your continued use of the Platform after the effective date of any changes constitutes acceptance of the updated Terms. If you do not agree to the changes, you must stop using the Platform and may delete your account.

19. General Provisions

19.1 Governing Law. These Terms are governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of England and Wales. You agree to submit to the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of England and Wales, without prejudice to any mandatory consumer protection rights you may have in your country of residence.

19.2 Severability. If any provision of these Terms is found to be unlawful, void, or unenforceable, that provision shall be severed and shall not affect the validity of the remaining provisions.

19.3 Waiver. No failure or delay by us in exercising any right under these Terms shall constitute a waiver of that right.

19.4 Entire Agreement. These Terms, together with our Privacy Notice and Cookie Policy, constitute the entire agreement between you and Restart Talent in relation to your use of the Platform as a candidate.

19.5 Assignment. We may assign our rights and obligations under these Terms in connection with a merger, acquisition, or sale of assets. You may not assign your rights under these Terms without our prior written consent.

19.6 Third Party Rights. These Terms do not confer any rights on any third party under the Contracts (Rights of Third Parties) Act 1999.

19.7 Force Majeure. Restart Talent shall not be liable for any failure or delay in performing its obligations under these Terms where such failure or delay results from circumstances beyond our reasonable control, including but not limited to power outages, internet service disruptions, cyberattacks, acts of God, pandemic, or government action. We will take reasonable steps to resume normal service as soon as practicable and will notify users of any significant disruption.

20. Contact Us

Last updated: 1 June 2026 | Version 1.0 | Restart Talent Ltd | Company No. 15945851