The Charity Commission Sees 15% Rise in Whistleblowing Reports
A report published on 28 September 2018 reveals whistleblowing disclosures to the Charity Commission are up by almost 15% from 2016-2017.
Whistleblowing and the Charity Commission
The Public Interest Disclosure Act 1998 (PIDA) protects workers from detrimental treatment or victimisation from their employer if, in the public interest, they blow the whistle on wrongdoing. The Charity Commission is a 'prescribed person' under PIDA which means, if a worker cannot go to their employer to 'blow the whistle', they can contact the Charity Commission if they are concerned about wrongdoing within the charity they work for.
The reports states that 'Whistleblowing disclosures help [the Commission] detect and prevent concerns within the sector and take steps to put these right. They help create more effective and efficient charities and more generally assist in raising the public’s trust and confidence in charities and the charitable sector.'
The Report
The report identifies that out of the 101 disclosures made:
- 82 were identified as potentially needing regulatory action; and
- 15 of the reports have led to "a higher level of regulatory activity".
The largest number of disclosures made concerned the governance of charities, however, the number of reports remained relatively static rising from 58 in 2016/17 to 60 in 2017/18.
The Commission's figures indicate safeguarding concerns are the main reason for the overall increase in the whistleblowing reports, with the number of disclosures made about safeguarding rising by 60% in the last financial year from 15 in 2016/17 to 24 in 2017/18. A full copy of the report is available here.
This increase in the charity workers reporting safeguarding concerns coincides with the recent focus on safeguarding in the charity sector following the high profile incidents at Oxfam, Safe the Children and the Presidents Club. The increase in the number of reports is therefore, perhaps, unsurprising due to the level of media scrutiny and activity from the Commission on this topic.
The report also indicates that the Commission plans to improve the service it provides for potential whistleblowers, which includes the publication of new guidance on reporting wrongdoing at a charity as a worker or volunteer.