1. | PURPOSE1.1. | The Surrey Board of Education of School District No. 36 (Surrey) (“the district”) is committed to upholding ethical standards in the operation and administration of the district and recognizes that it has a responsibility to appropriately safeguard students and staff and the property and assets of the district. The purpose of this procedure is to provide a process through which individuals, other than employees, may make, in good faith, reports of wrongful conduct under Policy 7110 Whistle Blowing (“policy”) without fear of reprisal.
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2. | REPORTABLE ACTIVITY2.1. | For the purposes of the policy and this procedure, a “reportable activity” is any serious wrongful conduct in connection with the district’s programs or operations, including:
| a) | The violation of any laws of British Columbia or Canada, including the Criminal Code of Canada, or other applicable laws.
| | b) | The material breach of the district’s policies or procedures. | | c) | Misappropriation of district funds, resources or questionable accounting practices. | | d) | Fraud or falsifying district records. | | e) | Theft of cash, goods, services or time. | | f) | Any intentional, reckless, or dangerous practice that could reasonably be expected to cause physical harm to any person or damage to district property. | | g) | Abuse of power or authority. | | h) | Retaliation against any person making a report or participating in an investigation under the policy. |
| 2.2. | The above list is not exhaustive but is intended to give an indication of the type of conduct which may be the subject of a report under this procedure and Policy 7110 Whistle Blowing.
| 2.3. | A reportable activity does not include complaints about the legitimate exercise of managerial authority or other personnel actions that are subject to the grievance procedure or other processes under applicable collective agreements and employment contracts.
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3. | NO RETALIATION3.1. | The district does not tolerate any kind of retaliation or reprisal as a result of making a report in good faith or of cooperating in an investigation of a report.
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4. | CONFIDENTIALITY4.1. | The district will endeavour to handle reports under this policy confidentially, and personally identifiable information from the report will be shared only as reasonable and necessary to conduct a complete and fair investigation as required by law.
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5. | REPORTING A COMPLAINT5.1. | Individuals may submit a report about any reportable activity to the Superintendent or, if the report concerns the conduct of the Superintendent, then to the Secretary-Treasurer at the district. The Secretary-Treasurer shall report to the chairperson of the Board of Education concerning any report regarding the conduct of the Superintendent.
| 5.2. | A report may be made by:
| a) | Confidential email. | | b) | Completing a Whistle Blower Complaint form and submitting it by regular mail. |
| 5.3. | Individuals who do not wish to be identified in connection with a report should clearly indicate this preference in the report. However, it is important for individuals making a complaint to understand that anonymous complaints may be challenging to fully investigate.
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6. | INVESTIGATION6.1. | Upon receiving a complaint, the Superintendent or Secretary-Treasurer will record the receipt of the complaint and determine whether the matter is, in fact, a reportable activity under this procedure.
| 6.2. | If the Superintendent or, as applicable, the Secretary-Treasurer determines that the complaint is a legitimate reportable activity, they will commence an investigation.
| 6.3. | The Superintendent or, as applicable, the Secretary-Treasurer may enlist senior management and/or external legal, accounting or other advisors, as appropriate, to assist in conducting any investigation.
| 6.4. | It is the obligation of all employees to cooperate in any investigation, and employees seeking to hinder or obstruct an investigation may be subject to disciplinary action.
| 6.5. | If an investigation establishes that an employee has engaged in improper activity or reportable activity the Board will take appropriate corrective action.
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7. | REFERENCE AND RELATED DOCUMENTS |
8. | AUTHORITY AND RESPONSIBILITY8.1. | Superintendent of Schools | 8.2. | Human Resources Department |
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9. | HISTORYRevised: | 2024-03-13
2023-11-08
2016-06-03 | Approved: | 2009-06-25 |
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