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Any member of staff who has a reasonable belief that there is serious malpractice relating to any of the protected matters specified in Scope of the Policy, may raise a concern under the procedure detailed here. The issues raised under the protected list may relate to another member of staff, a group of staff, the individual's own Institution or another part of the University. The individual must reasonably believe that the relevant failure or malpractice has occurred or is likely to occur and that matter is in the public interest. The University will ensure that any member of staff who makes a disclosure in such circumstances will not be penalised or suffer any adverse treatment for doing so. However, a member of staff who makes an allegation maliciously or vexatiously without having reasonable grounds for believing that the relevant failure or malpractice has occurred or is likely to occur and that the matter is in the public interest may be subject to disciplinary proceedings.
 

In view of the protection afforded to a member of staff raising a concern about matters they reasonably believe to be in the public interest, it is hoped that individuals will feel able to put his/her name to any disclosure. The identity of the person raising the matter will be kept confidential, if so requested, for as long as possible provided that this is compatible with a proper investigation. Proper investigation may be more difficult or impossible if further information cannot be obtained from the person raising the complaint. It is also more difficult to establish whether any allegations are credible.  Anonymous complaints will be investigated  and acted upon as the person receiving the complaint sees fit, having regard to the seriousness of the issue raised, the credibility of the complaint, the prospects of being able to investigate the matter, and fairness to any individual mentioned in the complaint.