NHS employers cannot assist individuals with local concerns however in this section we signpost you to information about where to seek independent advice.
If you are considering raising a concern, there are some practical steps you can take to ensure you are prepared and understand the process.
Read your organisation's raising (whistleblowing) concerns policy
Your trust policy should be available on your organisation's intranet site. If not, either your HR, personnel department, manager, supervisor, mentor or a union representative will be able to signpost you.
Understand how to raise a concern
The raising concerns policy will outline who you should raise a concern with, and the appropriate way to escalate it if necessary. Understanding the process is key to ensure the issues you raise are listened to, properly investigated and that your employer has an opportunity to resolve it quickly and effectively. By following the process correctly you are
protected by the Public Interest Disclosure Act (PIDA), which exists to protect individuals to genuinely raise a concern using a correct process in the event they suffer some form of victimisation as a result. A
helpful guide to PIDA can be found on the Public Concern at Work website.
You can also access some helpful film
resources developed by Health Education England, which have been designed to help you confidentially raise concerns.
Find out who you can talk to in your organisation
Ideally, we would always recommend you raise any concerns as soon as possible with your line manager, supervisor or mentor, either informally or formally. If this isn't possible, then you may need to speak to another member of the management team, or other identified person or mechanism as identified in your organisation's raising concerns (whistleblowing) policy. This could be your local Freedom to Speak Up guardian, champion or ambassador, or indeed a local union representative. Download our
poster which takes you through the correct process.
Know where you can access independent advice
If you are unsure about an incident, you can seek independent advice from
Speakup.direct, Public Concern at Work or
Citizen's Advice.
Speakup.direct - confidential advice service
Speakup.direct, (which replaced the national whistleblowing helpline at the end of 2017) provides free, independent and confidential advice to all staff and contracted workers within health and social care. While the helpline cannot investigate concerns, it can provide invaluable advice on whether your concern is indeed whistleblowing and talk you through the process to ensure it is followed correctly. The helpline are also able to advise on how you can escalate the concern with a prescribed body if needed. Further information on prescribed bodies can be found below.
To
speak to a helpline advisor call 08000 724 725. Alternatively
you can use their web form.
Understand when and how to escalate a concern
If you are unable to raise your concern with your employer, perhaps because you don't feel listened to or are worried the concern hasn't been taken seriously or effectively dealt with, you can refer it to a prescribed body/person (recognised regulatory body) who can intervene if needed. A list of relevant prescribed bodies can be found on the
GOV.UK website.
Guidelines of how to escalate a concern with a regulatory body, can be found on the websites below:
Additional guidance for staff outside of England
For NHS staff in Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland, you may find it helpful to refer the following websites:
Wales
Health Inspectorate Wales,
Department for Health and Social Services, and the
Care Council for Wales.
Scotland
Care Inspectorate, Health Improvement Scotland and Scotland Social Services Council.