At SES, we are committed to act as a responsible business and we encourage all employees and other stakeholders to inform us of any information relating to violations, or potential violations, of applicable laws and regulations or our values and Code of Conduct.
To facilitate this, SES has established a dedicated independent and confidential whistleblowing service through Safecall. This service is available to all our employees and stakeholders (contractors, suppliers, shareholders, etc.) in accordance with the Protected Disclosures Act 2014 and Protected Disclosures (Amendment) Act 2022 and the EU Whistleblowing Act.
We prohibit all forms of retaliation against anyone who comes forward in good faith and will make every reasonable attempt to ensure concerns are addressed appropriately.
Report a new incident
Review an ongoing case
When do I Speak Up?
SES takes whistleblowing very seriously and is committed to independently investigate any allegations raised. If you see or suspect any wrong-doing relating to violations, or potential violations, of applicable laws and regulations or our values and Code of Conduct SES wants to hear about it. You don’t need to have any proof that these things are happening – if you have a reasonable belief, you should report your concerns. Instances in which you should use this independent “Speak Up” service are detailed in the FAQs section below.
The “Speak Up” service is not for grievances. A grievance is usually a complaint about something that impacts a colleague as an individual, like how they feel they’re being treated at work. Please see the FAQ’s section below for more information.
How do I Speak Up?
You can contact your, free and confidential, “Speak up” service 24/7 in two ways, as follows:
1. By calling Safecall on: 0800 915 1571
For a full list of country freephone numbers visit: www.safecall.co.uk/file-a-report/telephone-numbers/
2. Online through the ‘Report an Incident’ button above
Your report won’t be traced and Safecall has trained operators to support you. Please see FAQs section below for tips when submitting your report. Reports can be submitted anonymously.
Frequently Asked Questions
My concern is related to bullying, harassment in the workplace or other HR grievance. What should I do?
The “Speak Up” service is not for grievances. It’s important to understand that whistleblowing is different to a grievance. Both are equally important and need to be investigated. A grievance is usually a complaint about something that impacts a colleague as an individual, like how they feel they’re being treated at work. SES have separate Dignity and Respect at Work Policy, Grievance Policy and Anti-Bullying Policy processes to manage these concerns and details can be found either from your Line Manager or Chief People Officer.
In line with Equality of Human Rights Commission guidance on sexual harassment and harassment at work, if you believe you have experienced harassment in the workplace you may use Safecall to report it anonymously if you don’t feel you can go through the standard reporting process.
How will my concern be investigated?
If you contact Safecall through the online ‘Report an incident’ option above, your report will be managed in confidence. Safecall will pass all the information you give, apart from your name if you wish, to SES who will make sure your concern is investigated thoroughly, confidentially and independently. If we need more information to help progress our investigation, we’ll post a request on the Safecall website which you can access using the username and password provided during your original report. You can provide further information, or request feedback on your concern, via the Safecall website.
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 SES. You will be given a unique code to log into the online portal in order to message the investigator at SES.
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 have been any messages for you left by the investigator. This allows you to keep up to date with your case, without sharing your identity with SES.
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.
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 SES colleagues and contractors 24 hours a day, 365 days a year and is staffed by professional call handlers based in the UK.
When should I use this “Speak Up” service?
You should use this independent “Speak Up” service if you see or suspect:
Deliberate concealment of any of the above
Criminal activity
A failure to comply with legal, professional or regulatory obligations
A miscarriage of justice
A health and safety breach
Environmental issues such as a risk to or actual damage to the environment
Bribery or corruption
Modern slavery
Financial fraud or mismanagement
Insider threats
What should I include in my report?
As part of your report please think about providing clear details about where and when the issue occurred. This should include location, dates and any colleagues involved / aware. This will make our investigations a lot easier.
Who at SES will receive my report?
The report is initially sent to the Trade Compliance Officer, who will work with the Ethics Alert Unit to allocate the information provided to the most appropriate person in the business to review and decide next steps.
It’s important that we keep things confidential, so we may not be able to tell you about the investigations or actions we take in relation to the issue you’ve told us about, however where any updates are provided these are to be treated as confidential.
For information on how Safecall process your data, please see the Safecall Privacy Notice.