Prescribed Person
In whistleblowing law, a person or body designated by the Secretary of State to whom a worker can make a qualifying disclosure and still receive statutory protection, even though the disclosure was not made to their own employer.
Independent editorial summary — not the official statute text. Read the official version on legislation.gov.uk.
Ordinarily, whistleblowing protection under the Employment Rights Act 1996 is strongest where a worker raises concerns with their employer, but Parliament recognised that some concerns are better directed straight to a specialist regulator. Section 43F of the Act provides that 'a qualifying disclosure is made in accordance with this section if the worker... makes the disclosure... to a person prescribed by an order made by the Secretary of State for the purposes of this section', provided the worker reasonably believes the matter falls within that person's remit and that the information is substantially true.
GOV.UK publishes the official 'list of prescribed people and bodies you can report malpractice to, other than your employer', explaining that a worker who wants to blow the whistle to a prescribed person 'must make sure that you've chosen the correct person or body for your issue', since each entry on the list covers only specified matters (for example, the Insolvency Service for company fraud, or the CQC for health and safety in care settings). The list is kept under periodic review — the 2026 update notes that 'the list of prescribed persons and bodies... has been updated' under a fresh amendment order, showing that the roster of prescribed regulators changes over time and should always be checked against the current version.
Related terms
Official sources
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