By Stone King
Charity CEOs face multiple challenges. Whether it’s financial uncertainty, the burden of increased regulation, the fragile political environment, or concerns about overall resilience, ensuring that whistleblowing is handled properly may not always be at the forefront. However, whistleblowing isn’t just a compliance issue – it’s about building trust, upholding integrity, and protecting the charity’s mission. It forms a crucial part of the wider ecosystem of good governance, alongside an effective complaints policy and the charity’s broader policies.
The way a charity handles whistleblowing concerns also directly influences whether staff and volunteers feel safe to speak up. A clear and supportive culture, regular spaces for honest listening and support, and an effective approach to whistleblowing promote openness and accountability. Many charity CEOs and boards are working extremely hard to achieve this. But we also see situations where people feel discouraged from raising concerns or believe they won’t be taken seriously. This can lead to an unhealthy working environment, allow serious issues to go unaddressed and create legal and reputational risk.
We know the pressures that you are under and the relentless demands on CEOs and leaders with polarising debates and rising inequality and hate, as well as the burden of red tape and increased regulatory demands, so we have set out some top tips for getting your approach to whistleblowing right at the end of this article.
Why getting your approach right matters
In the charity sector, where trust and transparency are so essential and employee activism is on the rise, getting your approach to whistleblowing right is especially crucial. The Charity Commission takes whistleblowing extremely seriously and expects charities to have robust whistleblowing procedures in place. The Charity Commission is a statutory ‘prescribed body’ for whistleblowing purposes, meaning it is the designated regulator to which staff and volunteers can report concerns about the proper administration of charities. It has a dedicated email address specifically for whistleblowing reports. Interestingly, the charity sector – despite being a relatively small part of the UK workforce – accounts for a disproportionately high number of calls to Protect, the whistleblowing charity that offers a free and confidential advice line for whistleblowers. That’s perhaps not surprising when you think about it: people working in charities often feel deeply connected to their organisation’s mission and values, so when something doesn’t seem right, they’re more likely to speak up. And employee activism is also on the rise.
When whistleblowing concerns arise, it’s important to act quickly and transparently. If the issue involves serious harm to people, loss of assets, or damage to your charity’s reputation or operations, you may need to submit a Serious Incident Report (SIR) to the Charity Commission and other regulators, depending on what your charity’s activities are. Being proactive in doing so shows you take governance seriously and are committed to protecting your charity and its beneficiaries. Reporting early demonstrates openness and builds trust – with both regulators and stakeholders.
Risks of getting it wrong
Failing to handle whistleblowing concerns properly can expose a charity to serious risks – impacting its people, operations, and reputation. When concerns such as fraud, safeguarding, or misuse of charitable funds are ignored, mishandled, or suppressed, donors, volunteers, and beneficiaries may lose confidence in the charity, and it can lead to long-term reputational damage. Regulatory consequences can also follow, including investigations or sanctions from the Charity Commission, particularly if governance is found to be inadequate.
Poor practice – such as failing to investigate concerns or retaliating against whistleblowers – can also lead to legal claims, including claims in the Employment Tribunal for detrimental treatment or automatic unfair dismissal. It was always previously understood that only paid workers could bring whistleblowing claims. Trustees and volunteers will be considered whistleblowers when raising concerns with the Charity Commission, but it was always previously understood that they were not protected under whistleblowing law. However, the recent case of MacLennan v The British Psychological Society is a potential game changer – and could set a precedent that allows trustees and possibly other volunteers to bring whistleblowing claims, which potentially ups the stakes significantly for charities if whistleblowing concerns are mishandled.
We have previously written about this case on our website:
Top tips for charity CEOs
As CEO, your leadership sets the tone for how whistleblowing is understood and handled across your charity. We have set out below some practical tips to make sure your approach supports a healthy, transparent culture:
- Lead from the front. If you show that raising concerns is welcomed and taken seriously, others will follow your lead.
- Work together with the board. The board has a crucial role to play and strong alignment between the executive and Board will help ensure better decision-making, shared accountability, and a united front if challenges arise.
- Keep the policy simple and visible. Make sure your whistleblowing policy is easy to understand and easy to find – for staff, volunteers, and trustees alike.
- Create safe spaces to speak up. People need to know they can raise concerns confidentially and without fear of retaliation. Make that clear in both words and actions.
- Act quickly and fairly. Don’t let concerns linger. Investigate promptly, communicate clearly, and follow through. It helps build trust and show accountability.
- Make sure everyone’s trained. Regular training helps staff and trustees understand what whistleblowing is, how to report concerns, and what happens next.
- Review and learn. Check in regularly – are people using the process? Are there trends or lessons to take forward?
- Embed whistleblowing in your governance. Make sure whistleblowing is part of Board discussions, risk reviews, and leadership conversations to ensure it’s taken seriously and acted on appropriately.