Introducing the "whistle-blowing" helpline
There was conversation recently on forums about what the collective noun should be for a group of Bookkeepers; I think a cloud of Bookkeepers seemed to win the day. But after last week’s phenomenal Summit there can be only one collective noun: A happy.
A packed main hall heard one-after-another fantastic keynotes - everything from robots to dirty washing. The top names from the profession took to the Summit stage to give their vision of the profession and the wonderful people who are going to be even more vital as artificial intelligence proliferates. I can honestly say this year that there was no weakest link. From Robin Williams giving his opening “Good morning ICB” welcome, to the giant teddy given away at 5 o’clock on the second day, this was a magnificent Summit by any measure.
Over two very busy days, Summit once again proved itself to be the pinnacle of the Bookkeepers’ year. Keynotes were backed up with more than thirty hugely popular workshops: The exhibition of ICB accredited partners was hugely popular and this year everyone once again pulled out all the stops with their stands. Not for Summit the table and pull-up banners; these were professionally designed spaces to reflect the importance of the bookkeepers that they were all seeking to attract: And who from the packed Gala Dinner and Awards ceremony could fail to have been swept up in the surge of pride in the outstanding achievements being recognised by the twenty-four LUCAs that were presented to the worthy winners after hotly contested competition across every category. The 2018 Bookkeepers Summit was for many, quite simply, the best ever. We set very high standards - and always set the bar very high for ‘next year’. Watch this space.
Congratulations to the hardworking and totally committed ICB Team for all their hard work; to the speakers, the exhibitors and of course the sponsors. But above all, to those of you who attended in record numbers. ICB exists for you and because of you. Congratulations.
You can read a roundup of the Bookkeepers Summit best bits here.
Following its recent onsite supervisory visit to ICB, the Office for Professional Body Anti-Money Laundering Supervisors, (OPBAS), has said that, at the time of its visit, ICB did not have in place ‘policies and procedures to handle disclosures from external whistle-blowers’.
This is intended to provide members with the facility to submit a confidential report about an employer or colleague that they suspect of money laundering or other activity which they believe to be illegal.
ICB is therefore introducing a dedicated ‘whistle-blower telephone line’ that will be directed to appropriate ICB staff within the ICB Compliance Team, who are trained in handling confidential information. ICB will introduce specific procedures and policies to ensure that the information received is properly recorded, addressed and evaluated and, where the information is found to have substance, escalated.
Because of the profile of ICB members, ICB has always felt that there was not a major need to have in place a specific policy that catered for whistle-blowing, partly because the majority of its member practices are sole-traders, so run by individuals, and also because ICB felt that its policy of open access to senior management, directors and the compliance team, was sufficient. However, in deciding to introduce a helpline, ICB has considered the need for all Supervisory Bodies to have in place policies and procedures that are similar and that provide equal access to support and guidance.
ICB Director of Compliance, Stephen Hardwick, said that ICB students and members “can be confident that any calls to the helpline will be handled sensitively and confidentially. ICB will thoroughly and objectively investigate the information received and take appropriate disciplinary action including, where necessary, applying sanctions.”
The helpline telephone number is 0203 405 7581. ICB will publicise the telephone number widely, using the website, newsletter and social media outlets.
