Anyone handling local resolution complaints, including minor misconduct complaints in Immigration Enforcement, UK Visas and Immigration and Border Force. This is particularly relevant for front line operational staff.
Professional Standards Unit progressing and managing Serious or Gross Misconduct.
Responder Hubs and Direct Communication Unit responsible for replying to service complaints or service and misconduct complaints.
Purpose
11.1. The complaints handling arrangements of Immigration Enforcement, UK Visas & Immigration and Border Force are intended to ensure that children are not disadvantaged in using the complaints system and are treated fairly through reasonable, age-appropriate adjustments being made to processes where necessary. In particular, any child making a complaint should feel confident in doing so and feel safe from repercussions and understand that the making of a complaint will not affect the consideration of any claim made by the child or their family.
11.1.2. Whilst it is intended that the complaints handling process should be made accessible to, and usable by, children directly, it will almost always be in the best interests of the children to be supported and helped by a responsible adult.
11.1.3.When a child makes a complaint that raises complex issues or issues that could have serious Implications, the responder or PSU investigator should contact the child to clarify whether they
want or need adult support. If the child does want help the responder or PSU investigator
should, where possible, suggest and offer to facilitate contact with appropriate parties including; parents, teachers, voluntary organisations, etc.
11.1.4. Explanation of the Safeguarding Children
The specific functions covered by the duty include: immigration, asylum and nationality
functions of the Secretary of State; functions conferred by virtue of the immigration acts on an immigration officer; as well as general customs functions, and customs functions conferred upon designated customs officials. Services provided by contractors have to be provided having regard to the need to safeguard and promote the welfare of children.
Immigration Enforcement, UK Visas & Immigration and Border Force staff and contractors now have a specific duty to have regard to the need to safeguard and promote the welfare of the children with whom staff have contact or who are directly affected by Immigration Enforcement, UK Visas & Immigration or Border Force activities. In order to fulfil that duty they must;
(a) ensure that children are not disadvantaged in using the relevant complaints system and are treated fairly through reasonable, age-appropriate adjustments being made to processes where necessary; and
(b) take appropriate actions to share information with, and report concerns to,
will be undertaken in line with the Information Sharing Policy statement – see Appendix C.)
Staff working for devolved administrations or overseas are expected to follow the same principles. .
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11.2. Explanation of the Safeguarding Children duty in complaints
handling
Customer Service Operations (CSO) has overall responsibility for complaints management within the Immigration Enforcement, UK Visas & Immigration and Border Force including;
communicating the complaints process to customers, staff and contractors
ownership of the complaint policy and supporting guidance,
End-to-end processing of complaints including administration Complaints
Management System (CMS); drafting and issuing response letters; considering ex gratia payments; undertaking reviews; and, liaising with Parliamentary & Health Services Ombudsman (PHSO)
investigation of serious misconduct complaints through Professional Standards Unit 11.2.1.The processes managed by CSO for complaints handling are set out in this Complaint Management Guidance.. This section provides further guidance as to how all staff can help the complaints handling process be consistent with the Section 55 duty by ensuring that;
information about the complaints is readily accessible and easily understood by children and/or their responsible adult (see Section 4)
the complaints process ensures gathering of best evidence from children, keeps them informed regularly of progress and conveys the findings in a clear but sensitive
manner (see Section 4)
anyone who has contact with children can identify children who are being harmed or are at risk of harm and knows how to report their concerns to the appropriate
authorities (see Sections 5 & 6)
11.2.2. Every person within Immigration Enforcement, UK Visas & Immigration and Border Force – not just in CSO - will either currently be, or potentially could be, involved in complaints handling. The frequency and extent of that involvement will depend on our roles within the department. The section 55 duty applies to all Immigration Enforcement, UK Visas &
Immigration and Border Force and Border Force staff and contractors handling complaints. 11.2.3. For example, staff having face to face contact with customers or receiving
correspondence direct from customers are likely to be required regularly to identify complaints and ensure they are recorded and handled appropriately. Other specialist staff, such as
Professional Standards Unit investigators, will meet complainants, including children, in face to face interviews.
11.2.4. Any staff member who communicates with the public, particularly those who have face to face contact, will need to ensure that they take reasonable care to identify possible abuse, neglect or harm of children and know how to instigate child protection measures by the Local Authority and/or Police.
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11.3. Training
Immigration Enforcement, Border Force and UK Visas and Immigration require all staff to complete the mandatory courses, which apply to their responsibilities and to keep their knowledge of children’s issues up to date.
All staff must complete the e-learning course Keeping Children Safe. This is a mandatory course and must be refreshed every two years. Tier 1 consists of 2 separate e-learning modules:
Keeping Children Safe: Core Model.
Keeping Children Safe: New Children’s Duty.
Border Force staff must also complete ‘Keeping Children Safe - Border Control
‘Keeping Children Safe – Detention Services’.
Keeping Children Safe (Tier 2) is intended for those staff who make decisions involving children as part of their job, whether it is face to face or on paper. You can find the OCC intranet page on which includes a link to Discover from the Office of the Children’s Champion (OCC) page here)
Keeping Children safe (Tier 3 - POISE / INDIGO) is intended for staff who regularly have face to face contact with children. E.g. PSU investigators conducting investigation interviews regarding serious complaints to critical incidents. You can find the OCC intranet page on KCS training here)
Human Trafficking. National Referral mechanism Process. These courses explain the Council of Europe Convention on Trafficking and describes how to identify children who may be victims of trafficking and how to refer using the National Referral Model.
In addition, Professional Standards Unit staff will complete the National Investigative Interviewing Tier 3 course if required. The course contains information about dealing with issues relating to ‘vulnerable persons’, which could include children
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