LIFE-AR encourages the raising of concerns at the earliest opportunity
Raise a Concern with Safecall
Safecall is a free, confidential service for reporting concerns about LIFE-AR. A concern can be about anything to do with LIFE-ARs work, safety, effectiveness or integrity.
Who are Safecall?
Safecall is a completely independent company that operates a confidential reporting hotline for many global businesses and charities. The service is available to all LIFE-AR participants, stakeholders and contractors 24 hours a day, 365 days a year and is staffed by professional call handlers based in the UK.
Who can report?
Anyone connected to LIFE-AR in any capacity. We encourage reports from anyone who has a concern about LIFE-AR.
How does it work?
You can contact your free and confidential “Safecall” service 24/7 in two ways as follows:
By calling safecall at: 0800 915 1571 in any language.
For full list of country freephone numbers visit Toll-free lines
Online through the “Share a Concern” button above in any language.
Your report won’t be traced, and Safecall has trained operators to support you. Please see the FAQs section below for tips when submitting your report.
You can choose to remain anonymous. An independent case manager receives your concern and keeps you informed. The LIFE-AR interim Secretariat reviews and investigates each report. They will only know your identity if you want them to.
Why report?
We want to address any problems as early as possible. Raising a concern helps us act quickly where appropriate, to minimize harm, to support those affected, to stay accountable, and maintain the trust of the communities and governments we serve. All reports are treated seriously and confidentially.
You can also use Safecall to report concerns about LIFE‑AR Board members or the LIFE-AR interim Secretariat Director. If a disclosure is received by about a Board member or Secretariat Director, it will ordinarily be referred to the LIFE‑AR Board Chair for consideration and investigation as appropriate.
Other mechanisms for raising concern(s):
Reporters may also use alternative reporting mechanisms to uphold accountability, ensure transparency, and guarantee that all concerns are documented.
- The relevant National Platform Focal Point for matters relating to specific National Platform activities
- The Chair of the LIFE-AR Board for matters involving the Secretariat Director or Board Members.
- The LIFE-AR Secretariat concerns reporting email: lifear-[email protected]. Your report may be seen by any of the LIFE-AR Investigation Team including the LIFE-AR Director.
Frequently Asked Questions
MY CONCERN IS RELATED TO BULLYING, HARASSMENT OR A GRIEVANCE AT WORK, WHAT SHOULD I DO?
A grievance is usually a complaint about something that impacts you as an individual or as a group of colleagues e.g. if you feel you are being treated unfairly at work.
Please raise grievances in accordance with your organisation’s Grievance Policy or, where applicable, the community procedures and protocols in your jurisdiction.
HOW CAN I MAKE A SAFECALL REPORTING DISCLOSURE?
SAFE Call (Independent Reporting Service)– Any stakeholder can raise concerns on this portal page by clicking the ‘Share a concern’ button at the top of this page. Safecall will receive the report and pass all the information you give, apart from your name if you wish, to LIFE-AR Investigating Team who will make sure your concern is investigated thoroughly, confidentially and independently. If more information is needed to help progress the investigation, a request will be posted on the Safecall website which the reporter can access using the username and password provided during the original report. A reporter can provide further information, or request feedback on the concern, via the Safecall website. Reporters can submit questions and messages via the portal too. If a reporter reported a concern to the LIFE-AR anonymously then we may not be able to make contact to provide login details.
A disclosure can also be made through any of the following channels instead of Safecall:
- National Focal Point (NFP)– We hope that in many cases reporters will feel able to raise any concerns directly with their LIFE-AR NFP or another Manager within LIFE-AR or, where appropriate, with their employer’s Human Resources system. They may be able to agree on a way of resolving concerns quickly and effectively.
- Direct Email Submission – Reports may be sent directly to lifear-[email protected]
If you are interim Secretariat staff employed by IIED, you must report concerns only through IIED’s internal reporting channels. These will be managed under IIED’s policies and procedures.
CAN I RAISE A CONCERN ANONYMOUSLY?
With Safecall, you have the option to be anonymous, semi anonymous or a named reporter.
If you are anonymous, you will not reveal your identity to Safecall, or LIFE-AR. You will be given a unique code to log into the online portal in order to message the Investigation Team at LIFE-AR.
You may also choose to be semi-anonymous, this means you will share your contact details with Safecall, so you can receive updates via email if there has been any messages for you left by the Investigation Team. This allows you to keep up to date with your case, without sharing your identity with LIFE-AR.
You may feel more comfortable raising a concern anonymously. Please be aware that an anonymous report may impact our ability to investigate and resolve the matter successfully, and if the investigator can contact you, it may help them fully understand the issue and take appropriate action.
WHERE IS MY DISCLOSURE RECORDED AND WILL I RECEIVE UPDATES?
However, if you choose to make your disclosure it will be logged on Safecall’s portal where it will be accessed by the LIFE-AR Investigation Team. The LIFE-AR Investigation Team will not be able to see any information that you haven’t agreed can be shared with LIFE-AR (e.g. your personal details if you have decided to raise your concerns anonymously). Safecall will ensure that your concern is dealt with appropriately and any investigation is thorough and conducted with appropriate independence.
If you raised your concern directly with Safecall (either via their website, via email or the hotline) they will have provided you with login details to access their portal. Access to Safecall’s portal will enable you to ask questions, receive brief updates on your case or respond to questions that may be asked of you to aid any investigations. It is extremely important that you keep hold of your login details for the Safecall portal, for the duration and until your case is closed.
If you raised your concern internally within LIFE-AR (and not with Safecall) and chose to remain fully anonymous then please note that we will not be able to make contact to subsequently provide you with updates or feedback on your case.
WHAT HAPPENS AFTER A DISCLOSURE IS MADE?
The LIFE-AR Investigation Team receives a notification as a prompt to check the disclosure on the Safecall portal. LIFE-AR Investigation Team will then review the disclosure and the investigation approach agreed. The typical courses of action that will follow are:
- Early resolution facilitated discussion – where appropriate and where the reporter has indicated that they would be open to this approach they may be contacted to explore if there is potential for the concerns raised to be resolved through facilitated dialogue between parties.
- Internal investigation – Conducted by LIFE-AR Investigation Team, though on some occasions Safecall may recommend that a subject matter expert might be better placed to investigate, e.g. Health & Safety.
- External investigation–Conducted by an external investigator where a disclosure is considered to be particularly complex or significant. This may be Safecall, an external law firm, or referral on to an external organisation.
For received disclosures, the LIFE-AR Investigation Team will appoint amongst themselves a Case Officer and an Investigation Officer who will be assigned to the case. Appointments will be determined by the nature of the case, available skills, and capacity.
Case Officer (CO)
The Case Officer will liaise with reporters, the Investigation Officer and Safecall until the case has concluded. He/she will ensure that the investigation report findings and any recommendations are captured and implemented. He/She will also monitor the implementation of any management actions or recommendations that may have resulted from the investigation.
Investigation Officer (IO)
The Investigation Officer will undertake a fact-finding investigation into the concerns raised. That investigation will be dependent on the level of information provided. In the interests of a thorough investigation, it is important that reporters provide as much detail as possible – names, dates, places, named witnesses etc.
If investigated internally the IO will aim to complete the investigation phase within 3-6 months of being assigned the case. If investigated externally then the investigation phase may take longer than 6 months.
The timescales provided are indicative and not guaranteed. Some disclosures are very complex and may take considerably longer to investigate thoroughly, particularly where, for example, witnesses are not available due to sickness or other absence. Insofar as practicable, you will be kept up to date with progress. All efforts will be made to ensure that the case is concluded as quickly as possible.
Reporters may also be contacted (via any contact details provided or via the Safecall portal) to request clarification on some of the information provided, to provide additional detail/context or to meet with the IO to provide a witness statement.
WHAT IF I AM INVITED TO BE INTERVIEWED AS PART OF A SAFECALL INVESTIGATION?
You may be asked to attend interviews to provide further information. In this case you will be given advice about the procedure, and you can also ask the Investigation Officer questions if you need clarity about the process.
You may be accompanied by a colleague at any interview if they are not involved in the reported matter or related matters, or their involvement would not represent a conflict of interest.
During an investigation those investigating the disclosure may need to interview individuals identified as potential witnesses. This might include the reporter, LIFE-AR colleagues, service users, contractors or partners.
All individuals called upon to participate as witnesses in an investigation are required to co-operate fully with an IO, irrespective of whether that is the Service Provider, the Investigation Team, a LIFE-AR Representative, Internal Audit or an external body e.g. a regulatory body.
WILL SAFECALL REPORTERS BE INFORMED ABOUT THE OUTCOME OF THEIR CASE?
Wherever possible the Case Officer will provide feedback on the outcome of the case. Feedback will usually be provided via the Safecall portal and will likely be concise.
Please note – the feedback that Case Officers provide may be limited by LIFE-AR obligations relating to the sharing of confidential or personal information. This means that the feedback provided may be limited to confirmation that the investigation has concluded, that the outcome has been scrutinised and that the IO’s recommendations will now be implemented by LIFE-AR. We recognise that this can be frustrating for the reporter, who may feel that they need or wish to know more or that receiving a brief update means there hasn’t been a proper investigation or that LIFE-AR is ‘covering up’ the disclosed concerns.
We hope that reporters can be assured by the oversight and involvement of Safecall (as an entirely independent external organisation) and the scrutiny of Elected Members , that matters have been properly investigated and any recommended actions will be taken.
It should be noted that where matters are raised through a more appropriate channel, it is more likely that more detail on the outcome will be able to be shared as those processes are usually more personal to the parties involved.
WILL OTHER PARTIES INTERVIEWED DURING A SAFECALL INVESTIGATION BE INFORMED ABOUT THE OUTCOME OF THE CASE?
Wherever possible and where requested, brief feedback on the outcome of a case will be provided to other parties involved in a reporting investigation. Feedback will only be provided on request, not as a matter of course, and via contact details provided to the IO for this purpose.
Please note – the feedback that is provided may be limited by LIFE-AR obligations relating to the sharing of confidential or personal information. This means that the feedback provided may be limited to confirmation that the investigation has concluded, that the outcome has been scrutinised and that the IO’s recommendations will now be implemented by LIFE-AR. We recognise that this can be frustrating for other parties involved, who may feel that they need or wish to know more or that receiving a brief update means there hasn’t been a proper investigation or that LIFE-AR is ‘covering up’ the disclosed concerns or outcomes.
We hope that other parties involved can be assured by the oversight and involvement of Safecall (as an entirely independent external organisation) and the scrutiny of Elected Members, that matters have been properly investigated and any recommended actions will be taken.
It should be noted that where matters are raised through a more appropriate channel (eg. via one of the HR policies) it is more likely that more detail on the outcome will be able to be shared as those processes are usually more personal to the parties involved.
PRIVACY AND YOUR PERSONAL INFORMATION
LIFE-AR and Safecall are committed to protecting and respecting your privacy. For LIFE-AR and Safecall to provide the safe reporting service we need to collect and process information. This information may include your personal data if you are not anonymous or the personal data of others where this is contained in your disclosure. https://www.life-ar.org/en/privacy-policy/
Further information about how Safecall processes personal data can be found in Safecall’s Privacy Notice or by visiting their website at www.safecall.co.uk.
You may have agreed that Safecall can share your details with LIFE-AR or have provided Safecall with personal information that they need to share with LIFE-AR. LIFE-AR will process your personal information in accordance with the LIFE- AR data protection policy.