A look back at 2025…and a peek at what’s next!

If 2025 had a theme for the Liquid Friday Group, it would probably be growth, change and momentum, with a few big work and life moments thrown in for good measure!

From new offices to new faces, to awards, tech launches and preparing for major regulatory change, it’s been a full-on year. So, before we charge headfirst into 2026, here’s our look back at what made 2025 such a memorable one.

A new home

April marked a major milestone for the group as Liquid Friday and Liquid Link moved into our newly refurbished offices.

Still proudly based in the beautiful location of Port Solent, and just around the corner from our previous home, the move gave us the space and infrastructure to match the needs of both businesses. We’ve well and truly settled in to our new base, and it’s become a hub for collaboration, ideas (and very often cake!)

Our team

People sit at the heart of everything we do, and 2025 saw us welcome 19 new team members across the group – strengthening both our Liquid Friday and Liquid Link teams.

A huge welcome to:

Ashley, Giles, Connor Russell, Cristina Nastase, Daniel Webb, Daniel Stokes, Elizabeth, Harry, Gracie Matthews, Harrie Arnold, Jack Collins, Jamie Theobald, Jayden Miller, Lily Marriner, Lori Neil, Madeleine Lawrence, Megan Greasley, Mia Kinch, Nathaniel Shore, Olivia Scott and Shelley Gilmer.

Each has brought new energy, expertise and personality, and we’re incredibly proud of the team we’ve built.

On the flip side, 2025 also meant saying goodbye to some familiar faces. Most notably, our long-standing COO, Joe Taffurelli, who left Liquid Friday in the summer after more than 12 years with the business. Joe played a huge role in shaping Liquid Friday into what it is today, and we wish him every success.

Movers, shakers and milestones

2025 was a big year for progression, with several well-deserved promotions and expanded leadership roles across the group:

Frankie Smith – Promoted to Senior Compliance Officer
Harrison Bridger – Promoted to Head of Payroll
Jon Gardner – Appointed Group Head of Finance
Lewis Gosling – Promoted to Head of Technical Implementation
Libby Barlow – Promoted to Head of Customer Experience
Mert Kesici – Promoted to Customer Experience Team Leader
Samantha Whellans – Appointed Group Accounting and Finance Manager
Yasmin Judd – Promoted to Business Development Manager

Alongside promotions, a number of team members stepped into new roles, broadening their skills and and impact across the business:

Jake Kingshott – Business Development Executive
Mya Matthews – Payroll Co-ordinator
Megan Greasley – Payroll Co-ordinator

There were some personal highlights too – Mya got engaged, Lori graduated and Bilal and his wife welcomed a new baby. Big moments like these remind us that there’s plenty happening outside of work too – and we love celebrating it all!

Community & charity

Giving back continues to be a huge part of who we are.

DKMS Day: Raised £296, with 7 people joining the stem cell register.

Children’s Hospital Pyjama Appeal: A cause we support every year – raising £83 and donating 33 pairs of pyjamas.

Lynne Gowers swam 15k in June, raising over £300 for Bowel Cancer support.

Lewis Gosling took part in the CEO Sleep Out Portsmouth, helping to raise awareness of homelessness.

We’re incredibly proud of everyone who got involved and made a difference.

Recognition & partnerships

Across the year, we were proud to be shortlisted for several major industry awards, including the Recruiter Awards, REC Awards and NACFB Commercial Lender Awards. This is a real testament to our people, technology and approach throughout the Group.

Stride was highly commended for Best Contractor Innovation at the Contracting Awards and Jade MacDonald won Advanced Apprenticeship of the Year at the Portsmouth & Chichester Apprenticeship Awards.

Our strategic partnerships continued to go from strength to strength in 2025, and we continue to work closely with the REC, FCSA, TEAM and the NACFB.

These relationships are key to how we support agencies, contractors and brokers – and we’re excited to keep building on them.

Payroll powerhouse!

Behind the scenes of all the growth, innovation and relationship-building, the wheels of Liquid Friday umbrella and CIS payroll have always continued to turn! During 2025, we have:

Supported 13,150 contractor assignments
Issued an impressive 174,500 payslips
Processed a whopping £148,800,000 in payroll

That’s a lot of calculations, compliance checks and Friday paydays, and a huge credit to our payroll and operations teams who make it all look effortless.

Our tech: Stride 2.0

One of our biggest leaps in 2025 was the launch of Stride 2.0.

Originally, Stride was conceived to predict contractor behaviour and improve redeployment. That was the headline USP. But as more recruitment agencies began using it, something interesting happened.

What agencies valued most wasn’t the predictive insight – it was Stride’s ability to support compliance and simplify onboarding. It was making life easier.

We could have stuck stubbornly to the original vision. Instead, we listened to the market.

Stride 2.0 is our next-generation technology, designed to help agencies be more agile, stay compliant and deliver a brilliant contractor experience.

With instant pay illustrations, lightning-fast onboarding, real-time visibility, and smarter compliance and redeployment, Stride 2.0 sets a new standard for what umbrella contracting should be.

Looking ahead to 2026

A key part of our vision for 2026 is to make Stride a tool contract recruiters simply can’t live without.

We don’t say that lightly. There’s a lot of innovation in the pipeline, and we’re committed to continuing to build technology that genuinely solves problems, not just adds noise.

With umbrella regulation expected in April 2026, agencies are facing the reality of Joint and Several Liability.

This is a significant shift – but one we’re well prepared for. We’re in a strong position to support agencies with visibility, compliance and robust processes, helping them navigate the changes with confidence rather than concern.

2025 has been an eventful year – exciting, challenging at times, and hugely rewarding.

Thanks to our incredible team, loyal partners, and forward-thinking clients, we head into 2026 with confidence, ambition and plenty to look forward to.

Here’s to building on everything we’ve achieved… and making 2026 our best year yet.