The logging of a micro-aggression via this portal is separate to the act of making a complaint or disciplinary complaint about a member of staff, patient or a contractor providing services on behalf of the ICS. The data we receive via this portal will not be taken to form the basis of a complaint. We cannot ordinarily investigate complaints made anonymously, since complaints require detailed investigation. Subjects of complaints also have the right to defend against any allegation and this is not possible in relation to an anonymous complaint.

If you are a member of staff or patient and you wish to make a formal complaint, then please contact the relevant HR department for guidance on their respective complaints / disciplinary processes. Please take the time to read through the procedures and any accompanying guidance documents before making your complaint. We would always recommend that matters should be raised informally in the first instance, although we recognise that this may not always be possible, or feel like the safest option. If you need or would like advice or support in making a complaint, you may also contact your Trade Union representative.

If you are a member of staff and you wish to make a complaint about a member of staff, please consult your line manager in the first instance, who will direct you to the correct internal procedure. Again, we would always recommend that matters be raised informally in the first instance, but we recognise that this may not always be possible.

We will use the data we receive through this portal to further our understanding of the experiences of our workforce, patients, and communities, and help us to identify patterns of unconscious or implicit bias in our community.

A report on the data will be compiled and reviewed by the Inclusion and Human Resource leads and other system provider committees as appropriate. We will treat the data confidentially and remove the names of any individuals before the data is compiled into report form.

We may also use the data received to drive improvements to relevant organisational policies, inform training / development needs and develop interventions to thematically address issues raised at a system wide level. For further information about how we process your data, please view our privacy policy.

Read this blog post from Norfolk and Waveney ICS Head of Equality Diversity and Inclusion, Shimul Haider to learn more about how the Micro-Aggression portal will make a difference.

Your wellbeing is our top priority. If you need any emotional or mental health support, please contact NHS 111 and select option 2. For more information on this sevice, please visit: https://www.nsft.nhs.uk/first-response/

For additional support for health staff, please contact your organisation's Freedom to Speak Up Guardian.