Whistleblower policy

Last updated: April 2020

APPENDIX 2

General

The HGI's Code of Ethics and Conduct ("Code") requires HGI members to observe high standards of professional ethics in the conduct of their work and responsibilities. It is incumbent on human givens practitioners, supervisors and HGI Board and committee members to practise with honesty and integrity in fulfilling their responsibilities and to comply with all applicable laws and regulations.

Reporting responsibility

It is the responsibility of all HGI members and directors to comply with the Code, and additionally, they are encouraged to report violations or suspected violations in accordance with the Whistleblower Policy.

It is also incumbent on HGI members, staff, Board Directors and volunteers to raise concerns about the governance, processes or conduct of the Human Givens Institute. Any such concerns should be reported to the External Oversight Committee using the link below:

https://www.hgi.org.uk/about-hgi/organisational-structure/external-oversight-committee-human-givens-therapy-eoc

No retaliation

No member, practitioner, or employee who in good faith reports a violation of the Code shall suffer harassment, retaliation or other adverse consequence. A member who is found to have retaliated against someone who has reported a violation in good faith shall be subject to disciplinary proceedings and, where appropriate, sanctions will be applied up to and including expulsion from the HGI. This Whistleblower Policy is intended to encourage and enable members to raise serious concerns within the HGI.

Reporting violations

If an HGI member has serious concerns about the professional conduct of a fellow member, they are encouraged to submit these in writing by letter or e-mail to the HGI Membership Secretary, Human Givens Institute, Chalvington, East Sussex, BN27 3TD, email: [email protected], marking the communication ‘Private and Confidential’. The letter will be passed immediately to the HGI Registration and Professional Stanards Committee (RPSC), which will initiate an investigation of the matter. The HGI Membership Secretary will acknowledge the letter within seven working days of its receipt.

Anonymous allegations

This policy encourages members to put their names to allegations because appropriate follow-up questions and investigation may not be possible unless the source of the information is identified. Concerns expressed anonymously will be explored appropriately, but consideration will be given to:

• The seriousness of the issue raised
• The credibility of the concern
• The likelihood of confirming the allegation from sources that can be attributed to person/s with direct experience of the matter(s) raised

Confidentiality

Allegations of violations will be kept confidential to the extent possible, consistent with the need to conduct an adequate investigation.

Investigation of alleged violations of the code

The HGI Registration and Professional Stanards Committee (R&PSC) is responsible for investigating and resolving all reported allegations concerning violations of the Code.

The investigation process will normally involve seeking further information from the whistleblower, the member against whom the allegations have been made, and any other interested parties. Those members of the HGI RPSC whose role it is to adjudicate on the complaint will not be involved in the process at this stage, and will not be informed of the details of the investigation until it has been completed.

Where the whistleblower or the member against whom the allegations of misconduct have been made is not satisfied with the decision of the RPSC, they will have the right to lodge an appeal, subject to the following criteria:

• the decision of the complaint panel is not supported by the available evidence
• where misconduct has been established, the level of sanction applied to the member concerned is disproportionate to the level of misconduct
• it appears that a procedural error may have had a material impact on the findings and decision of the RPSC
• there is new evidence which was not available to the complaint RPSC during its deliberations.

Acting in good faith

Anyone filing a complaint concerning a violation or suspected violation of the Code must be acting in good faith and have reasonable grounds for believing the information disclosed indicates a violation of the Code. Any allegations that prove not to be substantiated and which prove to have been made maliciously or knowingly to be false will be viewed as a disciplinary offence.

 

Continue to: Concerns Policy (Appendix 3)