Trusted by leading UK businesses to power workforce engagement, compliance and payments at scale.
For more than 25 years, our founding brand, Event UK helped businesses build and manage flexible workforces more effectively. What started in hospitality, has grown into a multi-sector workforce and technology group, supporting UK employers with sourcing talent, scheduling work, payments and compliance checks.
Today, through JustPay Group, that mission continues with platforms designed to simplify how businesses source, manage and pay their contractor workforce.
Event UK was founded in 1998 by Matthew Hegarty, who saw first-hand how difficult it was for hospitality businesses to source and manage reliable contractors. The process lacked structure, transparency, and fairness.
So he built something better - a service designed around people, integrity, and operational efficiency. Those principles still guide everything we do today.
Over the years, we've become a trusted partner for top hospitality and service operators across the UK. With a network of over 30,000 vetted contractors, we support businesses everywhere - from bustling cities to quiet, remote areas of the UK.
Our scale, reliability and hands-on support are what keep clients coming back.
As workforce needs evolved, so did we. Event UK expanded beyond sourcing to deliver end-to-end contractor management, supported by smarter processes and purpose-built technology.
This evolution led to the JustPay Group - an ecosystem designed to simplify flexible workforce management through automation, visibility, and human-led support. Event UK remains a core part of that group, delivering the service our clients trust, enhanced by shared innovation.
We work with organisations that depend on specialist contractors to deliver exceptional experiences and essential services. Our technology is tailored to the unique requirements of each workforce, providing the visibility, control and flexibility needed to manage them effectively.
As workforce models evolve, we're continuing to invest in technology that gives businesses greater visibility, control and flexibility over how they engage and manage people.
Our focus remains unchanged - making flexible work simpler, fairer, and more transparent for everyone involved.
To build a future where workforce engagement is connected, automated and trusted by every business.
To create smarter, fairer and more flexible ways for businesses and contractors to work together through connected, technology-driven workforce solutions.
Shaped by experience, driven by reliability and transparency.
We design intuitive solutions that remove complexity, allowing businesses and contractors to work smarter and more efficiently.
We encourage accountability and clarity in every contractor engagement, from sourcing reputable suppliers to ensuring fair and timely payments.
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Our solutions prioritise people, empowering businesses and workers with reliable, efficient, high-quality tools supported by a dedicated team.
We continuously raise the bar, delivering precision, reliability, and meaningful impact in everything we create.
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The experience and vision driving the group forward
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Matthew Hegarty founded Event UK, after identifying a gap in how hospitality businesses manage contractors. Originally an insurance underwriter and London DJ, he launched the company in the late 1990s and has grown it into a trusted partner for many of the UK’s largest pub groups. With over 25 years leading the business, Matt focuses on service quality, integrity and building a team culture that balances attention to detail with genuine enjoyment of the work.
Toby Smith joined the Group in 2023 bringing more than 20 years of senior leadership experience across the UK hospitality sector. He has held executive roles including CEO of Town & City Pub Company and Novus Leisure, where he led growth, turnaround and buy-and-build strategies that created significant enterprise value. For the JustPay Group, Toby oversees operations and strategic delivery, drawing on deep industry expertise and a passion for improving hospitality businesses.
Mark Bell became Chief Financial Officer in 2024, contributing extensive international finance experience across technology and commercial sectors including Sony, Ericsson and Motorola Solutions. A Chartered Accountant by including Sony, Ericsson and Motorola Solutions. A Chartered Accountant by control frameworks and long-term strategic planning. Mark has also supported mergers, acquisitions and business transformations throughout his career.
Dan Phillips is a technology executive with more than 20 years of experience leading IT strategy across financial services, data analytics, aviation and education technology. As Chief Technology & Product Officer at Event UK, he oversees technology and product development, aligning digital strategy with business goals to support growth and innovation. He has extensive experience leading multidisciplinary teams across engineering, infrastructure, data and product functions, and specialises in digital transformation, cloud platforms and enterprise technology strategy. Dan is known for modernising complex technology environments, strengthening cybersecurity and delivering scalable digital products that improve customer experience and drive measurable business outcomes.
Peter Boddy is an experienced board-level adviser with a strong background in private-equity-backed leisure and fitness businesses. Former CEO or Managing Director of several successful consumer brands, he has also served as Chairman and senior independent director across multiple organisations. Peter brings strategic governance expertise and commercial insight to the Group, supported by an economics degree and MBA.
Behind every client partnership is a team of customer support specialists, compliance experts, account managers and in-house developers dedicated to delivering exceptional service and continuous innovation.
We believe great technology should always be backed by great people.
That's why we've built a team that combines customer support, compliance expertise, account management, operations and in-house software development - all under one roof.
Our culture is built around responsiveness, accountability and long-term partnership. We take pride in understanding our clients' businesses, solving problems quickly and delivering the high standards of service they rely on every day.
We're more than a technology provider. We work as an extension of our clients' teams - listening carefully, solving complex challenges and building tailored solutions that create lasting value. It's this collaborative approach that helps our clients stay efficient, agile and ready for growth.
We weave ESG principles into everything we do, ensuring our operations are sustainable and responsible.
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