Complaints and complaint handling—what’s changed?

With the launch of the new Child Safe Child Friendly Framework for Guiding in Australia  the way that Girl Guides NSW, ACT & NT takes, handles, and responds to complaints has changed.  The way that Members, Volunteers, families and supporters of Guiding in Australia, and the general public, may make a complaint or report an incident has also changed. There are now three forms available on the website Guide Lines for Girl Guides: Tell us what you’re worried about for use by those aged below 18, the Girl Guide Complaint Form for complaints and the Girl Guide Incident Report for reporting incidents. 

Tell us what you are worried about?  
Tell us what you are worried about?  is a new Youth Member Form that a Youth Member, a person under 18 years of age, or a person who has difficulty communicating, may use to raise a concern or complaint.  

Please see Element 9 . Responding to Feedback, Concerns and Complaints  on the Guide Lines  website where there are many resources to support the new processes. 

Girl Guide Complaint Form 
Any person, including an Adult in Guiding (Adult Member, Volunteer and Employee), is entitled to raise a concern or make a complaint. Firstly, it is important to know the difference between ‘raising a concern’ and ‘making a complaint’. A concern is an issue that is resolved quickly, usually at the first point of contact and on the spot.  

All grievances are now considered complaints. A complaint will take longer to resolve and includes the following, which are MUST-REFER matters 
  1. Child safety and wellbeing 
  2. Criminal conduct or breach of statutory obligation 
  3. Recurrent and/or long-standing unaddressed concerns 
  4. Misconduct such as a serious breach of the GGA Code of Conduct (including a breach of GGA or SGGO policies and procedures) 
  5. Matters which may affect the reputation of GGiA 
 

If a person says they want to make a complaint, they should be provided with the Girl Guide Complaint Form    or informed how to access the form on Guide Lines. This form replaces the existing Girl Guides NSW, ACT & NT grievance process. 

If the person raising the concern is a Youth Member, a person under 18 years of age or a person who has difficulty communicating, scroll back up to the section titled Tell us what you are worried about?


Girl Guide Incident Report 
The new Girl Guide Incident Report    replaces the ADM24a and 24b forms that Girl Guides used to report accidents and incidents.   The Girl Guide Incident Report form  and other suppoerting resources are available from Guide Lines.


Contact details for giving feedback and reporting incidents, concerns and complaints 

The new email address for complaints and reporting concerns is [email protected]. Remember, all grievances are now considered complaints. 
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