RAISING CONCERNS WITH HORIZON
Introduction - The Purpose of this Document
This is a paper which has been issued by the agreement of Post Office Limited and
the Justice for Subpostmasters Alliance (JFSA).
Post Office Limited is concerned to hear about and determined to thoroughly and
even-handedly investigate cases where there have been persistent assertions that
the Horizon system (Horizon) may be the source of unresolved shortages in Post
Offices.
Post Office Limited cares about its agents, the thousands of subpostmasters and
subpostmistresses (SPMRs) operating branches across the land for the benefit of the
community, Post Office Limited is committed to the highest standards of corporate
governance, openness, probity and accountability. It is happy to be sensibly
challenged and believes this to be a good thing.
Post Office Limited also acknowledges that there may be a concern that some SPMRs
might not express thelr concerns because they feel that speaking up would be
detrimental to their position, that they may also fear that they will be harassed or
victimised if they speak out, and that in these circumstances they may prefer to
ignore their concerns than to report them.
Post Office Limited would like to take this opportunity to emphasise that these fears
are unfounded. Although SPMRs are not employees of Post Office Limited, Post Office
Limited takes seriously any such allegations.
Therefore Post Office Limited, working with JFSA, is setting out in this document a
process where you can raise concerns regarding Horizon, and feel comfortable about
doing so. Any investigation of any concerns which you may raise will not influence
or be influenced by any disciplinary or network transformation actions that already
affect you.
This process also applies to all Post Office Limited employees, contractors and
agency staff working with Horizon for Post Office Limited.
In summary this document aims to:
- reassure you that you should have no fears about raising any concerns over
Horizon, including over victimisation and reprisals;
- provide you with a process for raising any such concerns;
- demonstrate to you that your concerns will be taken seriously and that you
will get a response to your concerns; and
- give you options if you are still not satisfied.
POL00000218
POL00000218
However Post Office Limited takes deliberate fraud, dishonesty and illegal conduct
against it very seriously, and has a duty to protect Post Office money and take action
if it has reasonable suspicions regarding the same. So you should only raise your
concerns through this process in good faith, and not frivolously, maliciously or for
personal gain.
How to voice your concerns
There are two steps you can take to voice your concerns. You can either contact
JFSA in the first instance (see (A) below), or you can go directly to Second Sight
Support Services Limited (Second Sight), an independent third party which is already
undertaking a review of several Horizon cases in consultation with the Right
Honourable James Arbuthnot MP (see (B) below).
{A) Initial Steps you can take with JFSA
1. You can discuss any concerns with JFSA and/or its advisers (contact details at
jfsa.org.uk). JFSA undertakes to treat these discussions as confidential. It is
then your decision as to whether or not you wish to pursue your concerns
through the Inquiry Route set out in Section B below.
2. If you decide to discuss your concerns with JFSA, you should make sure you
gather all your evidence together including all relevant documents, transaction
references, helpline references, copies of correspondence, contact details and an
outline of your concerns and any subsequent discussions with Post Office Limited.
You should retain all original documents at this time although they may be
required later.
3. You should provide JFSA with photocopies or PDF copies of all relevant documents,
which will be examined by JFSA and/or JFSA's advisers.
4. At this time JFSA undertakes that it will keep all information strictly confidential
and neither Post Office Limited nor Second Sight will be made aware of any
discussions with or submissions to JFSA. JFSA undertakes not to reveal any
details about you, your FAD code or branch location to Post Office Limited until
JFSA agrees with you that your concerns will be raised as part of the Inquiry.
(B) The Inquiry Route - an Overview
1, The Inquiry will be carried out by Second Sight within a "no blame" framework.
2. If you are a Horizon user (whether as a Post Office Limited employee, contractor
or a former or existing subpostmaster), you can submit your experiences of and
concerns with Horizon for consideration under the Inquiry through JFSA or by
contacting Second Sight at Tythe Farm, Maugersbury, Cheltenham,
Gloucestershire GL54 1HR. You must do this by 28 February 2013.
3. Except in a case where deliberate fraud, dishonesty or Illegal or unlawful conduct
is suspected, no information voluntarily submitted for the Inquiry in good faith
will be used for any purpose other than the Inquiry. However, Second Sight may
POL00000218
POL00000218
pass that information to Post Office Limited to enable Post Office Limited to
respond to any issues or questions arising out of the Inquiry.
(C) The Inquiry ~ the Detail
Details of the Remit, Conduct and Output of the Inquiry are set out in the Appendix
to this document.
Taking matters further
If for any reason you are not satisfied with the findings and wish to take matters
further, you are of course free to pursue other avenues which JFSA can help you
with,
Equally, if Post Office Limited has good reason to suspect that there may indeed
have been fraud, dishonesty or other illegal or unlawful conduct, it may decide to
pursue such matters in the civil or criminal courts.
Dated:
issued by and on behalf of JFSA
Signed
Issued by and on behalf of Secand Sight Support Services Limited
Signed
POL00000218
POL00000218
APPENDIX
The Second Sight Inquiry — the Detail
The Remit of the Inquiry
The remit of the Inquiry will be to consider and to advise on whether there are any
systemic issues and/or concerns with the "Horizon" system, including training and
support processes, giving evidence and reasons for the conclusions reached.
The Inquiry is not asked to investigate or comment on general improvements which
might be made to Horizon, or on any individual concern raised (see below) save to
the extent that it concludes that such investigation or comment is necessary to
address the remit.
The Inquiry is not a mediation or arbitration. It is not intended to resolve or affect
any dispute there may be between any individual Horizon user and Post Office
Limited.
The Conduct of the Inquiry
1. Submission of concerns
As highlighted, you can raise concerns directly with Second Sight. However, you
must do so by 28 February 2013.
By submitting a concern you will have agreed that it may be taken forward into the
Inquiry process, and that as a consequence Post Office Limited may become aware
of the content of the concern.
When submitting a concern, you should seek to ensure that you include ail of the
relevant facts of your experience of Horizon. You should include a written summary
of the concern, ali relevant documents, contact details, transaction references,
helpline references, copies of correspondence, an outline description of the error
incident and any subsequent discussions with Post Office Limited.
Second Sight will decide whether it will investigate an individual concern in detail as
part of the Inquiry, having regard to the remit. Second Sight may consult JFSA in
connection with this decision, The Inquiry will not consider any concern which
becomes the subject of a civil or criminal court case.
2. No Blame Framework
Tf:
- your concern is submitted in good faith;
~ you honestly and reasonably believe at the time of submission that the facts It
contains are substantially true and complete, so far as you know;
POL00000218
POL00000218
~ the concern is not submitted with the intention of making personal gain (for the
avoidance of doubt this does not include the SPMR believing or hoping that
SPMRs generally may benefit from the outcome of the Inquiry); and
- the concern does not reveal conduct which is or which is likely to amount to fraud
or any other criminal offence, or which may give rise to a civil claim
and subject to there being no overriding public interest to the contrary, Post Office
Limited will not subject you to any detriment either as a result of having submitted a
concern, or as a result of Post Office Limited becoming aware of any information
contained within a concern, For the avoidance of doubt, information already known
to Post Office Limited at the time that the concern is submitted may continue to be
used by Post Office Limited for any purpose.
3. Establishment and conduct of Inquin
Post Office Limited will pay Second Sight to conduct the Inquiry within a total budget
agreed between Post Office Limited and Second Sight. Second Sight will be
contractually obliged to complete the Inquiry within the agreed total budget, and
both Post Office Limited and JFSA will co-operate with Second Sight to facilitate this.
If the agreed total budget is or is likely to be reached before a report has been
published, Post Office Limited and JFSA will meet to discuss options.
All information recelved by Second Sight from whatever source in connection with
the Inquiry will be held confidentially and will only be used for the purposes of the
Inquiry.
JFSA can provide Second Sight with anonymised copies of any or all concerns to
enable Second Sight to conduct the Inquiry. Second Sight may provide any such
anonymised documents to Post Office Limited so that it can provide input and
assistance to the Inquiry.
Post Office Limited may provide Second Sight with its own comments on any or all
concerns, and on Horizon generally.
In order to carry out the Inquiry, Second Sight will be entitled to request information
related to a concern from Post Office Limited, and if Post Office Limited holds that
information, Post Office Limited will provide it to Second Sight.
Post Office Limited will provide Second Sight with such hardware, software and
technical information and administrative support as Second Sight may reasonably
require to carry out the Inquiry.
Second Sight will determine the process it will follow for the Inquiry using its
judgment, after consultation with Post Office Limited and JFSA.
The Output of the Inquiry
Second Sight will consult with JFSA, Post Office Limited, and/or any other party as It
considers necessary before producing any report. No party may introduce any wholly
POL00000218
POL00000218
new issue or concern at this stage, and the parties will each keep the consultations
with Second Sight and their contents confidential.
Second Sight will consider and take into account any comments received from JFSA,
Post Office Limited and/or any other consulted party, and may conduct further
investigations if necessary in light of the comments (having regard to the agreed
total budget). Second Sight will then produce the report by a date agreed between
Post Office Limited and Second Sight.
The report will report on the remit and if necessary will contain recommendations
and/or alternative recommendations to Post Office Limited relating to the issues and
concerns investigated during the Inquiry, The report and recommendations are to be
the expert and reasoned opinion of Second Sight in the light of the evidence seen
during the Inquiry.
The report may be published. Until it is published, JFSA (and its advisers), Post Office
Limited, and any other party consulted by Second Sight will keep the report and
evidence confidential.
Second Sight will prepare the report so that so far as is reasonably possible, it may
be published without redaction of personal data and/or information that is
confidential or commercially sensitive for Post Office Limited or any Horizon user,
bearing in mind the primary need to ensure that the report is reasoned and evidence
based.
POL00000218
POL00000218