How “Speak Out” Cultures Can Help Prevent Abuse

All organisations should have a whistleblowing policy. But how many organisations understand how whistleblowing should work in practice?

There are many examples of whistleblowing helping to expose closed cultures and poor care standards. The incidents at Winterbourne View and Whorton Hall prompted a national response. Plus, a recent exposure at Lifeways demonstrated the lengths that some families feel they need to go to protect their families.

If your organisation values trust, honesty, and transparency, then you should actively encourage and support people to speak out.

Understanding Speak Out Cultures.

Staff and volunteers can be an organisation’s most valuable sources of intelligence. We need to ensure that everyone concerned with the organisation knows how to call out poor practice when they see it. Plus, everyone should feel that they can trust the people and the policy to support them if they choose to speak out, and everyone should know how to formally escalate a safeguarding concern.

Strong leadership at every level is essential in developing a speak out culture. Trustees and senior teams should set the tone of safeguarding. Managers and support staff should then implement best practice guidelines across the organisation. There could also be self-advocacy groups for people who use the organisation’s services. And as a whole, the organisation should adopt a learning culture, where everyone feels free to share their ideas.

Early Detection Prevents Abuse

Speak out cultures can help organisations detect potential wrongdoing or poor practice as early as possible. This can help to prevent future abuse, while also ensuring that:

• People using services will be better protected.
• Safer policies and procedures will be embedded across the organisation.
• People using services, and those working within them, will better understand the organisation’s expectations.
• Staff will be trained beyond compliance, understanding how to recognise poor practice or safeguarding concerns.
• Staff will feel competent and confident about reporting, knowing that they will be listened to.

The Impact  of a Strong Speak Out Culture.

We are always stronger together. And in an organisation with a strong speak out culture, there can be productive collaboration between people using services and professionals. Anyone can contribute to the conversation, and all voices are equally valid.

If your organisation has a strong speak out culture, you can demonstrate how you live your values every day. Organisations with speak out cultures are open and transparent. They operate with high levels of integrity while actively working to reduce risk and prevent abuse.

When employees feel safe to speak up, they are more likely to be engaged and committed to the organisation.

Be sure to read our introduction to whistleblowing, which can act as the foundation to your organisation’s speak out culture.