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Whistleblower Policy

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Consultation has concluded

Small wooden block letters spell out "Speak Truth".

What are we doing?

Hamilton Wentworth District School Board (HWDSB) is committed to providing learning and working environments that are welcoming, respectful, accessible, and free from discrimination and harassment. We are working to develop a Whistleblower policy and procedure. This policy is meant to encourage and support the HWDSB community to come forward to report wrongdoing. We know coming forward can feel unsafe and uncertain. Our intention is to write a policy, and related procedure, which makes people feel comfortable enough to file a report. Procedures are the actions we commit to take when people bring a concern forward. The Procedures for the Whistleblower Policy are written once the policy is approved by the Board of Trustees.


Who is this policy and procedure for?

This policy and procedure will be for the HWDSB community. As outlined in our Human Rights Policy www.hwdsb.on.ca, our HWDSB community includes students, staff, parents, guardians, caregivers, trustees, community advisory committee members, school council members, permit holders, vendors, service providers, contractors, volunteers, visitors, all other persons who are invited to, access or provide services, or attend Board and school events and any person or entity who enters into an agreement, or uses school board property.

What have we learned so far?

Hundreds of people told us what they want to see in the Whistleblower policy. They asked us questions. They made suggestions for changes to the policy. They also told us about the kinds of procedures they want to see once a policy is in place. We have shared what we heard from the consultation in the Documents section on the right of this page. We made changes to the draft policy based on what people told us and it was given final approval by the Policy Committee. We also developed a list of Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) that help answer the questions people asked us.

What are the timelines?

Staff has been working on the development of a procedure that clearly outlines the steps of the complaint process and ensure the guiding principles, and actions of the policy are upheld. Staff have also been working on procuring the services of a third party to accept complaints and a process for how that works. We are anticipating finalizing the procedure and process during June 2023 with a soft launch in July to test the new system and a broader, more formal launch in time for September.


What are we doing?

Hamilton Wentworth District School Board (HWDSB) is committed to providing learning and working environments that are welcoming, respectful, accessible, and free from discrimination and harassment. We are working to develop a Whistleblower policy and procedure. This policy is meant to encourage and support the HWDSB community to come forward to report wrongdoing. We know coming forward can feel unsafe and uncertain. Our intention is to write a policy, and related procedure, which makes people feel comfortable enough to file a report. Procedures are the actions we commit to take when people bring a concern forward. The Procedures for the Whistleblower Policy are written once the policy is approved by the Board of Trustees.


Who is this policy and procedure for?

This policy and procedure will be for the HWDSB community. As outlined in our Human Rights Policy www.hwdsb.on.ca, our HWDSB community includes students, staff, parents, guardians, caregivers, trustees, community advisory committee members, school council members, permit holders, vendors, service providers, contractors, volunteers, visitors, all other persons who are invited to, access or provide services, or attend Board and school events and any person or entity who enters into an agreement, or uses school board property.

What have we learned so far?

Hundreds of people told us what they want to see in the Whistleblower policy. They asked us questions. They made suggestions for changes to the policy. They also told us about the kinds of procedures they want to see once a policy is in place. We have shared what we heard from the consultation in the Documents section on the right of this page. We made changes to the draft policy based on what people told us and it was given final approval by the Policy Committee. We also developed a list of Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) that help answer the questions people asked us.

What are the timelines?

Staff has been working on the development of a procedure that clearly outlines the steps of the complaint process and ensure the guiding principles, and actions of the policy are upheld. Staff have also been working on procuring the services of a third party to accept complaints and a process for how that works. We are anticipating finalizing the procedure and process during June 2023 with a soft launch in July to test the new system and a broader, more formal launch in time for September.


Consultation has concluded