Confidential Reporting

You should raise them with your Home Manager or, if you prefer, with the line Manager for the Home.

You should talk to another manager or you could contact Protect Advice.

This will depend largely on the nature of the concerns you raise. However, in all cases, the Manager, or other person, with whom you raise your concerns will arrange to meet you as soon as possible and away from the workplace, if necessary, to enable you to explain fully what your concerns are and why you have them. We will ask you how you wish to see the concern resolved and whether you would want to be told about how we will conduct the investigation. The Manager will tell you either at that meeting or as soon as possible afterwards, what action will be taken in response to the issues you have raised. You will be told the outcome of any investigation into your concerns. Sometimes, however, it may not be possible to reveal the full extent of the investigation where this relates to personal issues involving a third party. Where action is not taken, you will be given an explanation.

Yes, but because issues raised under this procedure will often be of a sensitive nature, you should discuss the matter with as few people as possible.

This will depend on the nature of the issues you raise. Wherever possible, the matter will be addressed within 28 days of you raising it.

If you do not agree with the way your concerns have been dealt with by Management, you may in the first instance notify the Designated Manager (Confidential Reporting). Alternatively, you may seek advice from Protect Advice, a charity which provides free independent legal advice to staff and others who wish to raise concerns about the workplace.

1. You must arrange to meet the person raising the concerns as quickly as possible to establish exactly what the concern is and understand what has given rise to it;
2. You need to consider carefully where the meeting should take place and allow the person raising the concerns to be accompanied by an appropriate friend or colleague, if that is their wish;
3. You must make a note of your conversations with the person raising the concerns and agree the accuracy of that note with them;
4. You must be sensitive to the fact that the person concerned may feel uncomfortable about raising issues with you regarding a colleague or a manager;
5. You must consider and address the support needs of the person who is the subject of the concerns and of the person raising them;
6. If a person disclosing a concern wishes their identity to be confidential, you ought to provide reassurance that their wish will be respected. You should explain that you will not disclose their identity without their consent unless a Court Order requires this. You should also explain that it may not always be possible to take all the necessary action if their identity is to remain confidential;
7. You must prioritise the process of dealing with the issue remembering that, wherever possible, it should be addressed within 28 days of the matter being raised with you.

If the issue appears to be of a relatively minor and straightforward nature, you may decide to resolve it informally and directly with the individual who is the cause of the concerns.

If the issue appears to be complex or more serious, you must first consider whether any immediate action is necessary to protect the needs of the child, or other service users. (This may include referring the matter to the Police and/or initiating Child and Protection Procedure. If the concern relates to the welfare of a child and you do not feel able to respond, you should seek advice on how to proceed from the Designated Manager (Confidential Reporting)).

You must then decide how the issue is to be investigated (e.g. under Disciplinary Procedures) and must arrange for that investigation to take place as quickly as possible.

You must inform the person raising the concerns of the action that you have taken and of the outcome of any investigation.

You must refer the matter to an appropriate manager with responsibility for the individual who is the cause of the concerns. However, in considering who to refer the matter to, you should take account of the level of seriousness of the concerns and any reservations expressed by the person raising them about who they should be referred to. If you are left with any uncertainties, you should talk to the Designated Manager (Confidential Reporting).

You must decide which of you will do this in your discussions with the Line Manager or the Designated Manager (Confidential Reporting) of the person who is the cause of the concerns. If confidentiality is an issue, then it will be necessary for you to advise the person raising the concern of the outcome of the investigation. If not, it may be most appropriate for the Manager initiating the investigation to do so. Either way, the employee raising the concerns should be told before the investigation begins, if possible, who will notify her/him of its outcome.