Stakeholder Grievance Policy

1. Purpose & Scope

The Cheeky Panda is committed to transparency, accountability, and meaningful stakeholder engagement. This policy provides a safe and accessible mechanism for non-employee, non-customer stakeholders to raise concerns associated with our operations, impacts, or conduct.

Out of scope:
Employee grievances → handled by the Employee Grievance Procedure, all details of which can be found in the Employee Handbook.
Customer delivery complaints or General Enquiries → handled by Customer Services who can be contacted by emailing customer.services@cheekypanda.com
Any issues currently pending legal action and/or include accusations of illegal acts without a formal legal resolution.
Complaints that include illegal actions and/or threats

Stakeholders in scope include: suppliers, communities, partners, investors, NGOs, advocacy groups, and affected individuals.

2. Grounds for Acceptance of a Grievance

A grievance will be accepted when it relates to any credible, specific concern about:

Environmental or social impacts
Ethical conduct, human rights, or labour practices
Non-compliance with sustainability commitments or certifications
Misrepresentation, governance issues, or stakeholder harm
Community, supply chain, or partnership impacts

3. How Stakeholders Can Submit a Grievance

Stakeholders may submit concerns confidentially by completing the grievance form on the website.

Submissions can be anonymous however this will limit the company’s ability to follow up and confirm the findings of any investigations or remediations. Any personal information is kept strictly confidential.

4. Grievance Handling Process (Step-by-Step)

Acknowledgment: We will confirm receipt within 5-10 business days, outlining the process and expected timeline.
Scope Review: Within 10–15 business days, we will determine if the grievance falls under this policy. If not accepted (e.g. unrelated issue), we will explain why.
Investigation: An impartial member of management will investigate the grievance (gathering facts, consulting relevant teams, etc.). We aim to resolve issues promptly, typically within 20–30 business days of acknowledgment. If more time is needed (for example, due to complexity or the need to gather additional information), we will keep you updated.
Decision & Corrective Action: Once the investigation is complete, we will reach a resolution. This may include corrective actions (policy changes, training, remediation, etc.) if the grievance is upheld. If contact details were provided we will inform you in writing of the outcome and any actions taken (or the rationale for closing the case).
Appeal: If you are dissatisfied with the outcome, you may request a review or appeal within 10 business days of the decision. The appeal will be reviewed by a senior leader not involved in the original decision, where possible. We will communicate the final decision – or any additional actions – within 20 business days of the appeal.

5. Protection Against Retaliation

The Cheeky Panda is committed to ensuring that all stakeholders can raise concerns safely and without fear of retaliation. To protect stakeholders, we maintain strict confidentiality throughout the grievance process and allow any grievance raiser or affected individual to request that their identity remain confidential if they anticipate risk or retaliation.

At the outset of any grievance review, we clearly communicate who must be involved and seek explicit consent before sharing information with additional parties.

All outcomes of the process remain confidential, and only essential parties are informed. Team members responsible for handling grievances receive enhanced training to ensure they follow best-practice protocols and uphold our commitment to fairness and privacy.

Any breach of confidentiality will result in appropriate disciplinary action. Where necessary, particularly for vulnerable stakeholders, we may collaborate with independent third parties to assess risk, ensure safety, and support an impartial review.

6. Avoiding Conflicts of Interest in Decision-Making
To ensure fair handling:

Individuals named in a grievance will not take part in its review.
The Grievance Lead must declare any potential conflicts.
Cases involving senior leaders may be escalated to the CEO as required.

7. Transparency & Reporting

Annual anonymised summaries of grievance categories and resolutions will be published on our website. Where any grievances have been raised.
Aggregated data will be included in sustainability reporting and B Corp recertification materials.
We are committed to using grievance information for continuous improvement and accountability and the Senior Leadership team will be informed of all outcomes of upheld grievances so that learnings can be taken from each incident.