Complaints Policy

Zitamar News also has a Whistle-Blowing policy, which can be can be downloaded here.

Our policy is:

To provide a fair complaints procedure that is clear, convenient and easy to use for anyone wishing to make a complaint (in particular those that are vulnerable or who have disabilities)
To uphold and adhere to the Standards Code (“Code”) set out in the IMPRESS Regulatory Scheme in our assessment of all complaints
To publicise the existence of our complaints procedure so that people know how to contact us to make a complaint
To make sure everyone at Zitamar News knows what to do if a complaint is received
To make sure all complaints are dealt with promptly and fairly, with decisions based on sufficient investigation of the circumstances and (where appropriate) offer a suitable remedy
To make sure that complaints are, wherever possible, resolved and that trust in our journalism and our publications remains strong
To gather information about all the complaints we receive to help continually improve the quality of our journalism and our publications

Definition of a Complaint

A complaint is any expression of dissatisfaction, whether justified or not, about the editorial content, standards of journalism or conduct of employees or contributors involved in production of Zitamar News that engages the standards set out in the Code.

Who Can Complain and How?

Complaints may come from any person or organisation who is:

personally and directly affected by an alleged breach of the Code
a representative group affected by an alleged breach of the Code, where there is public interest in the complaint
a third party seeking to ensure accuracy of published information

A complaint should be received by email or in writing although complaints are accepted by other reasonable means where it is not convenient or practical for the individual complainant to complain in writing.

Confidentiality

All complaint information will be handled sensitively, telling only those who need to know and following any relevant data protection requirements.

Compliance Records

Zitamar News will maintain a written record of all complaints, to include the name and contact details of the complainant, the material or conduct in respect of which the complaint is made and the alleged Code breach.

For each complaint record, Zitamar News will include any steps taken by it to address the complaint, and the outcome of the complaint. This record will be made available to the public (in a redacted form, where necessary).