UK SIC 2007 · 78101
Activities of employment placement agencies
UK recruitment agencies, permanent placement firms. Distinct from 78102 (motion picture / TV / theatrical agencies) and 78200 (temporary employment agencies). Covers contingent recruiters, retained search, and executive search.
~32,000 active UK ltds filed under this code on Companies House.
Companies House data refreshed daily. Page reviewed July 2026.
Division 78: Employment activities
Employment activities covers the recruitment industry in its various forms. Permanent placement agencies register under 78109, temporary staffing businesses under 78200, and 78300 captures human resources provision, a code widely used by umbrella companies, payroll vehicles and staff outsourcing arrangements as well as HR providers. The distinction is worth respecting when building lists: a 78200 company runs candidates on its own payroll and carries the compliance burden that entails, while many 78109 registrations are single-recruiter businesses launched from a laptop.
Recruitment firms buy an unusually deep stack for their size: job board credits, sourcing tools, CRM and ATS platforms, invoice finance to bridge contractor payroll, and back-office outsourcing. Funders watch 78200 incorporations especially, because temporary agencies need working capital from their first placement onwards. A brand-new 78109 company usually signals an experienced consultant going solo, prime timing for software and finance offers. Website absence is common early on and worth pairing with incorporation date rather than treating it as a dead-company marker.
Related SIC codes
Who uses this code in B2B outreach
Lead generation for UK recruitment agencies →
Find UK companies hiring or about to hire, filter by SIC, headcount-proxy filing patterns, and incorporation age.
Where SIC 78101 clusters in the UK
About SIC 78101
Are headhunters filed under SIC 78101?
Yes, executive search and retained recruitment file 78101. The SIC doesn't distinguish between contingent and retained models.
Are temp agencies different?
Yes, temporary employment agencies (umbrella companies, payroll-bureau-style temp providers) file 78200. The distinction matters because temp agencies take on employer-of-record liability that placement agencies don't.
Find UK SIC 78101 companies
Filter Companies House by this code and enrich with verified contact data.
10 free trial leads, no card required.