If something does go wrong, you can send us a complaint. The Army Cadets takes all complaints seriously. We have a process that all members of the Army Cadets must follow to manage a complaint properly.
WHO CAN MAKE A COMPLAINT?
If someone feels that something has gone wrong and or could have been done better, they can submit a complaint. This includes our cadets and Cadet Force Adult Volunteers (CFAVs), our cadets’ parents or carers, and members of the public.
WHAT CAN WE NOT MANAGE AS A COMPLAINT?
There are some things we cannot manage as a complaint:
- If you have any concern relating to immediate risk or harm to one of our cadets, or any child or young person, please report it directly to the police on 999 or 101.
- If you are worried about the care or safety of a child, you can contact the NSPCC helpline on 0808 800 5000 or e-mail help@nspcc.org.uk who will be able to give you advice.
- Young people under the age of 18 can contact Childline on 0800 1111 for free confidential advice or support.
If we receive a complaint that relates to criminal activity or safeguarding concerns we will immediately pass it to the correct organisation to deal with.
WHAT SHOULD I DO FIRST?
Most Army Cadet activities take place locally at our detachments, so we strongly encourage you to speak to your local detachment volunteer team first as they can usually respond to your concerns quickly and courteously. They can also help explain our policies and processes if this was the cause of your concern.
HOW DO I SUBMIT A COMPLAINT?
Where it is not possible for our local detachment volunteer teams to help, you can complete and send us a complaint form. Please try to provide as much information as you can, but please don’t worry if you don’t have every detail at the time. Once you have completed the form, you can e-mail this to the appropriate county HQ team – the contact e-mails of all of our county HQ teams can be found on the Find your local HQ page.
WHAT HAPPENS NEXT?
When we receive a complaint, it is passed to correct part of the organisation to manage. They will get in contact with you so we can better understand what has happened and be able to review the complaint properly. We will keep you informed at each step of the complaints process and explain what the next steps in the process are.
CAN I USE THE ARMY CADETS PROCESS TO REPORT MALPRACTICE?
We have a different process for reporting malpractice, sometimes known as whistleblowing. This is explained on the MOD Confidential Hotline page. If you have a concern that someone in the Army Cadets is not complying with their legal obligations, is causing damage to the environment or is breaching the Civil Service Code or Service Values and Standards, you can contact the confidential hotline by calling 0800 161 3665 (or +44 1371 854881 for overseas) or e-mailing Confidential-hotline@mod.gov.uk.
The MOD Confidential Hotline cannot be used for complaints about behaviours, or concerns or bullying, harassment or discrimination. These should be submitted using the complaint form so they can be dealt with as soon as possible.
