We’ve seen recent examples of boards using initials and pronouns (she/ he) to refer to whistleblowers in documents. While this withholds their name, it gives unnecessary information that could identify the whistleblower, especially to others in the organisation and professional colleagues. To avoid any breach of confidentiality and the potentially serious consequences, it's essential to consider what should be included in whistleblowing documents and only include what is strictly necessary.
At the INWO, we minimise this risk by using gender-neutral language (e.g. they/ their) and referring to complainants as ‘C’.
If this (or similar) is not already established practice in your organisation, now is a good time to revisit this and check you are doing everything you can to protect whistleblowers’ confidentiality. The same approach should also be taken to the identities of other people involved in the investigation, like other witnesses.
P.S. take the same care with job titles too!