Clarity Umbrella - what's going on?

[cojak]

And to not have it in these circumstances i.e. unannounced ownership change, move to offshore, loss of FCSA accreditation, getting flamed on main IT contractor forum with virtually no response. I wouldn’t use them again based on this and as things stand wouldn’t be able to do my usual “try Clarity” line whenever someone asks me for brolly recommendation. Such a shame.

I don’t believe that flaming has been going on, questions have been asked. Again it’s not unreasonable as Lucy and Clarity pre-May have rightly been recommended by people (myself included) who have used them and this news has just surfaced.

I for one have no doubts regarding Lucy’s integrity, we will have to see whether this continues with Clarity now that she is no longer the owner. I am confident however that this will continue while she is with the company.

[Protagoras]

If true, some updates needed here:

https://clarityumbrella.co.uk/about-...ny-compliance/

And no sign of any updates ...

[jamesbrown]

I for one have no doubts regarding Lucy’s integrity, we will have to see whether this continues with Clarity now that she is no longer the owner. I am confident however that this will continue while she is with the company.

That's fair. FWIW, I agree that Lucy has built a well-deserved reputation in the contracting community, which was surely the basis for Clarity's success as a very small umbrella, not on many PSLs - Clarity is Lucy, let's be honest. Many of Clarity's umbrella employees were recommended to them, I would guess. I have always recommended Clarity, personally. I doubt a single person in this thread is (or should be) questioning Lucy's integrity.

On the other hand, I think Lucy's contribution to this thread, followed by FCSA removal, has probably done the opposite of allaying fears. If Clarity's umbrella employees were not made aware of this change, I think that is a little curious too. Also, given that Lucy is no longer a person of significant control, she could quite easily depart at very short notice and I think those concerns would suddenly go to 11. Overall, something doesn't smell right - at the very least there is some cackhandedness, albeit partly understandable with the fallout from Chapter 11. Until the FCSA situation is explained/reversed, those concerns are not going to disappear, though.

[Ketto]

It feels a bit like when Contractor Umbrella
got bought out a few years back, lots of us used to recommemd them prior to that that and before Clarity was set up.

Based on this thread (and the lack of any detailed responses to questions raised) i don’t think anyone sensible would currently engage with Clarity going forward. I say that as a previous user and someone who is potentially in need of a brolly in January, who would have previously seen them as the preferred choice.

[eek]

That's fair. FWIW, I agree that Lucy has built a well-deserved reputation in the contracting community, which was surely the basis for Clarity's success as a very small umbrella, not on many PSLs - Clarity is Lucy, let's be honest. Many of Clarity's umbrella employees were recommended to them, I would guess. I have always recommended Clarity, personally. I doubt a single person in this thread is (or should be) questioning Lucy's integrity.

On the other hand, I think Lucy's contribution to this thread, followed by FCSA removal, has probably done the opposite of allaying fears. If Clarity's umbrella employees were not made aware of this change, I think that is a little curious too. Also, given that Lucy is no longer a person of significant control, she could quite easily depart at very short notice and I think those concerns would suddenly go to 11. Overall, something doesn't smell right - at the very least there is some cackhandedness, albeit partly understandable with the fallout from Chapter 11. Until the FCSA situation is explained/reversed, those concerns are not going to disappear, though.

I've intentionally kept out of this but with the FCSA when an Umbrella is part of a Group the sins of 1 member impact the lot...


As for Contractor Umbrella, Simon sold SJD and took over management of Contractor Umbrella from his sister moving it from Ipswich to Hemel to form the basis of Dolan - it wasn't really a buy out more a relocation with Lucy and the others being made redundant.

[fatJock]

As someone who has used Clarity [and still currently do] for a couple of years and has recommended to a few I'm a bit saddened to be leaving but my agency has been in touch today saying the only work with FCSA approved and that I need to move to another on their PSC.

I'd echo what others have said, Lucy and her team have been great but given Clarity themselves have recommended we steer clear from non FCSA in the past then they'll likely be a victim of their own advice. Sad though.

[agentzero]

Reassurances are one thing and are always presented during M&A, but the parent company has the capability to do what it pleases and the child companies are controlled by the parent. That's the issue here.

Someone already posted the happenings at the parent company and it doesn't look good.

[agentzero]

eek
There are changes coming April 2026 regarding umbrella companies. If this could be a reason Clarity and Lucy have went down this path of consolidation, parent company, and whatever else is not yet known, why? You write as if close to the industry. Is higher potential liability and insurance requirements rendering smaller umbrella companies not viable from April 2026?

[eek]

eek
There are changes coming April 2026 regarding umbrella companies. If this could be a reason Clarity and Lucy have went down this path of consolidation, parent company, and whatever else is not yet known, why? You write as if close to the industry. Is higher potential liability and insurance requirements rendering smaller umbrella companies not viable from April 2026?

I made 1 post to point out a single fact, there are a lot of reasons why I won't say any more...

[Nothing to see here]

eek
There are changes coming April 2026 regarding umbrella companies. If this could be a reason Clarity and Lucy have went down this path of consolidation, parent company, and whatever else is not yet known, why? You write as if close to the industry. Is higher potential liability and insurance requirements rendering smaller umbrella companies not viable from April 2026?

We are seeing agencies that we work with wanting to work more closely with us as a result of the impending changes. We are seeing relationships being less transactional and more collaborative.

Smaller umbrellas may struggle as the pressure to give credit increases: https://www.freelanceinformer.com/ne...apse-owing-2m/

Though I do think there is more to this story than simple credit terms - the administrators report when you read between the lines and look at the timings smacks of serious mismanagement.