What is Whistleblowing?
Whistleblowing is a way for employees of an organisation, members of the public, contractors and stakeholders to raise reasonably and honestly, held concerns they may have about serious matters that could put Wiltshire Music Connect and those it supports, Wiltshire Council, its funders and/or the wider public at risk. Whistleblowing usually involves bringing forward concerns that are in the public interest to investigate and resolve.
Before blowing the whistle:
If you have a concern, a firm, polite challenge is sometimes all that is needed and it will often be appropriate to raise a concern with your main point of contact or line / contract manager in the first instance. Sometimes this will not be possible (for example, if you think the person may be involved in the issue).
If, for whatever reason, you do not feel able to raise your concern through those routes, or if you have done so and no appropriate action has been taken, we encourage you to blow the whistle. You are not expected to conduct your own investigation or prove your concern. It is enough that you have a reasonable suspicion.
As a part of Wiltshire Council, Wiltshire Music Connect and its Board has agreed to adopt Wiltshire Council’s Whistleblowing Policy but with a designated member of the board being the initial point of contact.
The designated member of Wiltshire Music Connect’s Board is Mrs Samantha Saville who can be contacted by email here concerns@wiltshiremusicconnect.org.uk
If you have not heard back within 7 days please alert us by sending an email to info@wiltshiremusicconnect.org.uk Please DO NOT forward the details of your concern, simply let us know you have not had a response.
What will then happen….
Our designated Board member will decide who would be the most appropriate person to conduct an investigation. This might be a finance officer, an internal auditor, or a governance officer, or the investigation may require more specialised skills.
Certain issues may be best referred directly into Wiltshire Council’s own procedure
It’s possible that in certain instances it may be necessary to refer the matter straight to the police, in which case you will be notified and the matter will transfer to the police.
When an investigator has been appointed we will let you know who it is. They will then contact you to make sure they have all the information they need to do their investigation. After the investigation is complete they will write a report that may contain recommendations. The report will go to the Chair of our Board (or if it’s already gone straight to Wiltshire Council’s procedure, the head of governance and the monitoring officer, as well as to the appropriate corporate director, who will be responsible for taking any remedial action identified.)
You will be told the outcome of the investigation in broad terms. If possible, we will provide you with a copy of the report. However, it may not always be possible to give details of the findings if that would involve breaching the rights of individuals afforded by the Data Protection Act 1998, or for other significant reasons.
If you are not content with Wiltshire Music Connect’s investigation then you can refer it on to Wiltshire Council.
Confidentiality and anonymity
Understandably, people who raise concerns through a whistleblowing procedure are sometimes concerned about their reputation or position, and wish to maintain confidentiality.
We encourage people to let us know their names and contact details when they raise their concern, because it is often difficult to conduct an effective investigation without being able to discuss it fully with the person who first brought the issue forward.
In practice, it is often desirable for the identity of the whistleblower to be known as the investigation progresses, but this doesn’t always mean their identity needs to be shared with any persons to whom the whistleblowing might relate.
We understand that some individuals may not be comfortable with what is known as ‘open whistleblowing’, so we will offer the option of keeping your identity confidential unless we are required to disclose it by law, or unless we have your permission. If you wish us to maintain confidentiality, we will always seek to do so.
Confidentiality is not the same as anonymity. It is unlikely that we will be able to conduct a whistleblowing investigation from an anonymous source.
What will then happen….
Our designated Board member will decide who would be the most appropriate person to conduct an investigation. This might be a finance officer, an internal auditor, or a governance officer, or the investigation may require more specialised skills.
Certain issues may be best referred directly into Wiltshire Council’s own procedure
It’s possible that in certain instances it may be necessary to refer the matter straight to the police, in which case you will be notified and the matter will transfer to the police.
When an investigator has been appointed we will let you know who it is. They will then contact you to make sure they have all the information they need to do their investigation. After the investigation is complete they will write a report that may contain recommendations. The report will go to the Chair of our Board (or if it’s already gone straight to Wiltshire Council’s procedure, the head of governance and the monitoring officer, as well as to the appropriate corporate director, who will be responsible for taking any remedial action identified.)
You will be told the outcome of the investigation in broad terms. If possible, we will provide you with a copy of the report. However, it may not always be possible to give details of the findings if that would involve breaching the rights of individuals afforded by the Data Protection Act 1998, or for other significant reasons.