Whistleblowing Services

What is whistleblowing?

Whistleblowing is when an employee reports certain types of wrongdoing within their organisation, such as bribery or corruption, and that disclosure is made in the public interest. In doing so, the employee must reasonably believe that the disclosure shows past, present, or likely future wrongdoing.

Wrongdoing can fall into one or more of the following categories:

criminal offences (e.g. bribery and corruption or fraud)
failure to comply with an obligation set out in law (e.g. modern slavery)
miscarriages of justice
endangering someone’s health and safety
damage to the environment
covering up wrongdoing in the above categories

When the above two criteria are met the disclosure is a ‘qualifying disclosure’ covered by the Employment Rights Act 1996 (as amended by the Public Interest Disclosure Act 1998). Under the law, whistleblowers are protected, so our team of experts can advise on the best way to handle a report of concern.

Related services

Whistleblowing hotline

We handle reports of concern via our dedicated hotline, where an experienced member of the team will take initial details from the whistleblower, ensuring they feel heard and are reassured of anonymity. Unlike a fully automated solution, your employees are given the time to recount what they observed, which can be difficult.

If for any reason the call cannot be answered immediately, the call defaults to a voicemail which is regularly checked. A call back will be made on the same day between the hours of 9am and 5pm.

Get in touch

How it works

Receiving report of concern

Our team will receive a report of concern by phone or email.
Acknowledging receipt of concern

If our online reporting service is used, our team will acknowledge receipt of the concern via email within 24 hours (excluding weekends) and allocate a reference number.
Logging concern

Each report of concern will be logged on a spreadsheet, stating that it has been received and the details of the report.
Evaluating concern

Our team will evaluate each report of concern within 48 hours (excluding weekends) to decide the best course of action.
Referring for investigation

If the report needs to be referred for investigation, our team will email your HR or compliance manager. If the reporter has requested anonymity, their personal details will be removed. In all cases, the reporter will be emailed with an update on actions taken.
Managing the report

If the report of concern has been referred for investigation, our team will take responsibility for checking timescales and ensuring the log is maintained after any action is taken.
Quarterly reporting

As part of our service, our team will provide you with a completed log each quarter.
Providing pragmatic advice

After a report of concern has been received, our team will provide you with initial advice on how it should be investigated - for example, whether police authorities or other agencies should be involved.
Our team can carry out the investigation if you wish, and they can also advise on whether the disclosure counts as a qualified disclosure - both are subject to separate instruction and cost.

Email reporting channel

In addition to our whistleblowing hotline, our online reporting channel provides a secure email that can be used any time of the day or night.

This service still has the human touch, as emails are reviewed by our experienced team within 24 hours of receipt.

Make an enquiry

Advice line for employers

We also provide advice lines for employers who want to manage whistleblowing internally but need support when complex, contentious, or sensitive reports arise.

Our expert team provide clarity and guidance wherever required, whether the matter is a public disclosure or practical support is needed on how to investigate and address the report (especially where there may be limited evidence).

Make an enquiry

How will our whistleblowing services benefit you?

Adopting our whistleblowing services will create a transparent culture that encourages employees to speak up and ensure adverse consequences are avoided. It will also help maintain the anonymity of whistleblowers and avoid repercussions.

We will ensure your business is meeting industry, statutory, and regulatory standards, and also helps tackle bribery and corruption. In turn, this will improve your reputation with key stakeholders such as customers, employees, and third parties.

Our dedicated team helps to detect issues and identify risks at an early stage, so these can be addressed appropriately to prevent scandal and avoid reputational damage.

Why use Wilkin Chapman?

We are a nationally recognised authority on regulatory law, trusted by clients across England and Wales. Providing detailed advice to both public and private sector clients, we are experts in complex regulatory issues - including whistleblowing.

Our team of regulatory solicitors will receive reports of concern from your employees, acknowledge these concerns and evaluate the best course of action for your business. Whether this is referring the whistleblower to your HR or compliance manager, seeking more information from them, or deciding whether action should be taken, you can be sure that we will have your business’s best interests at heart.

Get in touch Meet our experts

Whistleblowing Services

The governance team is extremely approachable and takes the time to ensure that lay people understand the complex issues through clear and detailed explanation.

Whistleblowing Services

The governance team is extremely approachable and takes the time to ensure that laypeople understand the complex issues through clear and detailed explanations. Administratively they are very well-organised.
Wilkin Chapman LLP stood out to us given its combined strengths in the public sector, governance and employment fields, offering national services and a quality choice outside traditional large city pools.
Whistleblowing Services

In all instances, their advice has been prompt, succinct, relevant, commercial and, above all, helpful.
Tony Nunan
Visuality

Whistleblowing Services

Visuality have used Wilkin Chapman for all our legal needs over the last two or three years. In all instances, their advice has been prompt, succinct, relevant, commercial and, above all, helpful.
Tony Nunan
Visuality

Whistleblowing FAQs

We help clients nip problems in the bud and resolve their issues every day.

Here are the most common questions we receive in regard to whistleblowing.

What is not protected by whistleblowing law?

Persons who report matters that are not in the public interest, nor fall within the categories mentioned above are not protected. Similarly, reports concerning personal grievances are not protected but should be dealt with under your company’s grievance policy.
Who can make protected whistleblowing disclosures?
Employees, managers, student professionals (e.g. student nurses), apprentices amongst others can make whistleblowing disclosures.
Several persons are not protected as whistleblowers by the legislation including:
- Self-employed persons
- Volunteers (without contractual relationships)
- Non-executive directors