Anti-Harassment Policy

LabMedExpert will not tolerate any form of harassment or bullying. The purpose of this policy is to inform trainees of the type of behaviour that is totally unacceptable and to explain what solutions there are, to who may suffer harassment or bullying.

The Company intends to provide a neutral environment in which no one feels threatened or intimidated.

Harassment is when someone repeatedly behaves in a way that makes you feel scared, distressed, or threatened. Harassment is a discriminatory act and is also a criminal offence. It is very difficult to define as it can take many forms, but mainly it takes the form of unwanted behaviour by one person towards another. For example:

• Patronising or belittling comments
• Comments about appearance/body/clothes
• Leering or staring at a person's body
• Unwelcome sexual invitations or pressure
• Promises or threats, concerning employment or conditions, in exchange for sexual favours
• Displaying offensive or sexually explicit material
• Touching, caressing, hugging or indecent assault

Note: Please remember that the behaviour is UNWELCOME, UNINVITED AND UNRECIPROCATED.

Bullying is also difficult to define. Obvious examples are:

• Threats of or actual physical violence
• Unpleasant or over repeated jokes about a person
• Unfair or impractical work loading

If you encounter a problem of this nature, it is vital that you make the person responsible aware that his/her remarks or conduct are offensive to you. This should be done in a simple, straightforward way. It is recognised that complaints of harassment or bullying are often of a sensitive or worrying nature and that it may be difficult to speak directly to the trainee or staff member. If this is the case, you should put your request in writing and hand it to the harasser or bully.

When or if the informal approach fails or if you believe that the harassment or bullying is of a very serious nature you must bring the matter to the attention of a Training officer, the Deputy Training Coordinator, or the Training Coordinator. If possible, you should keep notes of the harassment or bullying so that the formal complaint can be investigated, including the date, time and whereabouts of the act. If you make a formal complaint, it will be dealt with under the grievance procedure and all possible actions will be taken to separate you from the alleged harasser or bully.

If you bring a complaint of harassment or bullying, you will not be victimised for having brought the complaint. If, however, after a full investigation, the Company has grounds to believe that the complaint was brought with malicious intent, appropriate action will be taken.

All learners have the right to challenge the outcomes of their assessment decisions, if they consider the assessment has not been carried out properly. Learners might appeal on a variety of issues. These issues may include the following:

• Conduct of the assessment
• Adequacy of the range, nature and comprehensiveness of the evidence when set against the national standards and evidence requirements
• The opportunities offered in order to demonstrate competence of attainment
• Access to assessment
• Process of assessment
• Access to Internal Verification
• The handling of an appeal
• Administrative issues e.g. failure to register/apply for certification

This policy is in place to enable LabMedExpert learners to enquire, question or appeal against an assessment decision. LabMedExpert will aim to reach an agreement with a learner at the earliest opportunity, regarding any appeals that are made.

LabMedExpert will ensure that:

• Internal assessments are conducted by members of LabMedExpert staff who have appropriate knowledge, understanding and skills in this area.

If a learner wishes to appeal, the appeal must be lodged in writing with the relevant LabMedExpert staff member within 7 working days of the learner being notified of the assessment decision. The relevant centre staff member will then attempt to find a solution with the learner, assessor and internal verifier.

Any LabMedExpert staff member undertaking an appeal investigation must be independent from any assessment decisions made as part of a learner's qualification.

The relevant LabMedExpert staff member will acknowledge the appeal within 2 working days of receiving it. LabMedExpert staff member will investigate the appeal. Investigations may include undertaking interviews with any relevant parties.

The learner will be informed of the investigation outcome and decision within 10 days of the appeal being lodged (this may be extended, depending on the nature of the appeal). If the staff member feels the appeal is to be upheld, the learner will be notified of this in writing, within 2 working days of completion of the investigation.

The relevant procedures will be followed to ensure the learner's assessment decision is changed to show the correct mark and/or decision.

If an appeal is not upheld, the learner making the appeal will be given a written explanation detailing the reasons for the appeal not to be upheld.

All documents relating to an appeal must be saved and stored securely.

LABMEDEXPERT LIMITED is committed to providing a high level service to our customers. If you do not received satisfaction from us we need you to tell us about it. This will help us to improve our standards.

Complaints Procedure

If you have a complaint, please contact Mr. Olukunle Akanbi (Training Director) on 07375132852. You can write to him at PD 210 UWSP Glaisher Drive Wolverhampton WV10 9RU.

Next Steps

• We will send you a letter acknowledging your complaint and asking you to confirm or explain the details set out. We will also let you know the name of the person who will be dealing with your complaint. You can expect to receive our letter within 7 days of us receiving your complaint.
• We will record your complaint in our central register within a day of having received it.
• We will acknowledge your reply to our acknowledgment letter and confirm what will happen next. You can expect to receive our acknowledgement letter within 10 working days of your reply.
• We will then start to investigate your complaint. This will normally involve the following steps:
  • We may ask the member of staff who dealt with you to reply to your complaint within 7 days of our request
  • We will then examine the member of staff's reply and the information you have provided for us. If necessary, we may ask you to speak to them. This will take up to 4 days from receiving their reply.
• Mr. Olukunle Akanbi will then invite you to meet him to discuss and hopefully resolve your complaint. He will do this within 7 days of the end of our investigation.
• Within 5 days of the meeting Mr Akanbi will write to you to confirm what took place and any solutions he has agreed with you.

Note: In any event, we will comply with any statutory procedures that may relate to your complaint.

LabMedExpert Limited embraces diversity and aims to promote the benefits of diversity in all of its business activities. We seek to develop a business culture that reflects that belief. We aim to have a diverse candidate base. We will also strive to ensure that our trainees meet their own diversity targets.

LabMedExpert Limited is committed to diversity and will promote diversity for all its candidates. We will continuously review all aspects of our services to avoid unlawful discrimination. LabMedExpert Limited will treat everyone equally and will not discriminate on the grounds of an individual's "protected characteristic" under the Equality Act 2010 (the Act) which are age, disability, gender re-assignment, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex and sexual orientation.

LabMedExpert maintains robust safeguarding policies that include prevention of bullying, photographing children, managing behaviour and acceptable restraint, and compliance with legal frameworks. These policies operate alongside this Anti‑Harassment Policy to protect learners and staff.

If you have questions about this policy or wish to raise a concern confidentially, please contact your Training Officer or the Training Coordinator. Urgent safeguarding concerns should be escalated via the safeguarding contact routes provided during induction.