City of London's whistle blowing policy

Introduction

Members of the public may be the first to spot something that is seriously wrong in connection with the City of London and its activities. They might not say anything, however, because :

they may be worried that their suspicions might not be justified or
they may be worried that they or someone else might be victimised.

This is why the City of London has this whistle blowing policy to help the public, City of London Contractors and its staff to contact us with their concerns. The City of London is committed to being open, honest and accountable and therefore wishes to be alerted to any problems at the earliest opportunity. This will enable the City of London to take action, as appropriate to:

pre-empt crime or other wrong doings, where possible
where a crime or something suspicious has taken place, to instigate an appropriate investigation
bring to account the perpetrators
minimise and contain any adverse impact
take corrective action to eliminate or significantly reduce the scope for repeat occurrences.

Types of action covered by the policy

Concerns about the following types of wrongdoings are covered by the City of London’s whistle blowing policy:

Corruption
Fraud (including unauthorised use of City of London money, for example)
Theft
Mistreatment of clients, particularly children and vulnerable adults in our care
An unlawful act
Any danger to health and safety
A person abusing their position in connection with unauthorised activity for personal gain
Damage being caused to the environment (by pollution for example)
Misuse of City of London property.

Confidential reporting procedure

Any suspicion of fraud or other wrongdoing will be treated seriously and will be reviewed and analysed in accordance with the Public Interest Disclosure Act, the Human Rights Act and the City of London’s Fraud Investigation Plan.

Agency staff, contractors and City of London staff should be aware that they have statutory protection against victimisation and dismissal under the Public Interest Disclosure Act 1999, if they speak out genuinely against corruption and malpractice at work.

It is essential for all concerned that disclosures of wrongdoing or irregularity are dealt with properly, quickly and discreetly. This is in the interests of the City of London, its employees, any persons who are the subject of such allegations, as well as the person making the disclosure.

Confidential reporting is the disclosure or communication of information about possible malpractice by individuals or organisations, either internally or externally, to an organisation, in this case, the City of London.

The City of London is committed to the highest possible standards of openness, probity and accountability. In line with that commitment we expect all organisations that deal with us who have serious concerns about any aspect of the City of London’s work to come forward and voice those concerns. It is recognised that most cases will have to proceed on a confidential basis.

This procedure statement makes it clear that it can be done without fear of victimisation, subsequent discrimination or disadvantage and is intended to encourage and enable employees to raise serious concerns within the City of London rather than ignoring a problem or ‘blowing the whistle’ to external sources.

The procedure applies to all members of the public, employees, building contractors and those contractors working for the City of London on City of London premises, for example, agency staff, cleaners and caterers. It also covers suppliers and those providing services under a contract with the City of London in their own premises, for example care homes. It does not apply to Police Officers as they have a separate, specific procedure to follow.

This procedure is in addition to the City of London’s financial irregularities procedure, grievance procedure and other statutory reporting procedures applying to some departments.

Aims

The procedure aims to:

encourage you to feel confident in raising serious concerns and to question and act upon concerns about practice.
provide avenues for you to raise those concerns and receive feedback on any action taken
ensure that you receive a response to your concerns and that you are aware of how to pursue them if you are not satisfied
reassure you that you will be protected from possible disadvantage if you have a reasonable belief and that you have made any disclosure in good faith.

The Confidential Reporting Procedure is intended to cover major concerns that fall outside the scope of other procedures. Such concerns include:

conduct which is an offence or a breach of law, including failure to comply with a legal obligation
disclosures related to miscarriages of justice
health and safety risks, including risks to the public as well as other employees
damage to the environment

Thus, any serious concerns that you have about any aspect of service provision or the conduct of officers or members of the City of London or others acting on behalf of the City of London can be reported under the Confidential Reporting Procedure.

All concerns will be treated in confidence and every effort will be made not to reveal your identity if you so wish. At the appropriate time, however, you may need to come forward as a witness.

Anonymous allegations

This procedure encourages you to put your name to your allegation whenever possible.

Where an individual chooses to report their concerns anonymously, such anonymity will be respected. However, it should be noted that concerns expressed anonymously are much less powerful and will only be considered at the discretion of the City of London.

In exercising this discretion, the factors to be taken into account would include:

the seriousness of the issues raised
the credibility of the concern; and
the likelihood of confirming the allegation from attributable sources

It should be noted that, if the report suggests criminal activity, and the case is to be pursued by police, the identity of the person reporting the details may be important at a later date if criminal proceedings are to be pursued effectively; identification is preferred and will assist the investigation.

Untrue allegations

If you make an allegation in good faith and you have a reasonable belief in the truth of the allegation but it is not confirmed by the investigation, there will be no recrimination against you.

If, however, you make an allegation frivolously, in bad faith, maliciously or for personal gain, disciplinary action may be taken against you if you are a member of City of London staff.

How to raise a concern

Members of the public, employees and contractors may raise their concerns orally or in writing, by letter or email. Those who wish to make a written report, to the Chief Internal Auditor or the Town Clerk and Chief Executive, are invited to use the following format:

the background and history of the concern (giving relevant dates);
the reason why you are particularly concerned about the situation

The earlier you express the concern the easier it is to take definitive action. Although you are not expected to prove beyond reasonable doubt the truth of an allegation, you will need to demonstrate to the person contacted that there are reasonable grounds for your concern.

What not to do

You must not do any of the following:

contact the suspected perpetrator in an effort to determine facts or demand restitution
if you are an employee of the City of London, discuss the case facts, suspicions, or allegations with anyone outside the City of London (including the Press) unless specifically asked to do so by the Comptroller and City Solicitor’s Department or the Chief Internal Auditor
discuss the case with anyone within the City of London other than the people listed above.
Attempt to personally conduct investigations or interviews or question anyone unless asked to do so by the Chief Internal Auditor

How the City of London will respond

The City of London will respond to your concerns, and where appropriate, the matters raised may:

be investigated by management, internal audit, or through the disciplinary process
be referred to the police
be referred to the external auditor
form the subject of an independent inquiry.

In order to protect individuals and those accused of misdeeds or possible malpractice, initial enquiries will be made to decide whether an investigation is appropriate and, if so, what form it should take. The overriding principle which the City of London will have in mind is the public interest. Concerns or allegations which fall within the scope of specific procedures (for example, child protection or discrimination issues) will normally be referred for consideration under those procedures.

Some concerns may be resolved by agreed action without the need for investigation. If urgent action is required this will be taken before any investigation is conducted.

Within ten working days of a concern being raised, the responsible person (from Internal Audit for financial irregularities or Town Clerk’s Dept for other issues) will write to you:

acknowledging that the concern has been received
indicating how we propose to deal with the matter
giving an estimate of how long it will take to provide a final response
telling you whether any initial enquiries have been made, and
telling you whether further investigations will take place and if not, why not.

The amount of contact between the City of London officers considering the issues and you will depend on the nature of the matters raised, the potential difficulties involved and the clarity of the information provided. If necessary, the City of London will seek further information from you.

The City of London accepts that you need to be assured that the matter has been properly addressed. Thus, subject to legal constraints, we will inform you of the outcome of any investigation.

Confidential advice

This procedure is intended to provide you with an avenue within the City of London to raise concerns. The City of London hopes you will be satisfied with any action taken.

You could also make use of a confidential helpline service operated by an independent charity, Public Concern at Work. This organisation has practical experience of ‘whistle blowing’ and can explain your protections under the Public Interest Disclosure Act. Its work in this field has been endorsed by the Audit Commission and the Nolan Committee (which has been looking into standards in Public Life). Its helpline is staffed by qualified lawyers who can give advice, in strict confidence about whether and how to raise or pursue concerns that you may have about malpractice within the organisation.

The helpline number is 020 7404 6609.

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