When York College’s Summer 2025 staff survey revealed that employees were afraid to raise concerns, leadership wanted to make sure there were no serious issues going unheard.

York College implemented iTrust, an instant and anonymous feedback platform, to address a culture where employees felt unable to raise concerns openly and create the conditions to give employees a voice.

The Challenge York College Faced

Traditional routes for feedback such as line managers, open-door policies and team meetings don’t work for every concern or every person, especially in complex organisations like further education. When you factor in speaking up against potential concerns and whistleblowing, psychological safety becomes even harder to achieve. York College knew that. What they needed was a way for staff to share honestly, without fear of how it might land.

Why did York College choose iTrust?

The decision came down to simplicity. iTrust offered an anonymous staff feedback tool that was easy to understand and straightforward to roll out. No complicated setup, no friction.

“Seemed simple and straightforward” and it has been, from the initial setup through to the roll out.

What changed for York College since using iTrust?

Six months in, staff have quickly taken to sharing ideas and suggestions through the iTrust app, and importantly, they feel safe doing it.

“We have received a number of helpful suggestions which we have acted on or are in the process of acting on. I’d like to think that iTrust encourages staff to put ideas to us when previously they were reluctant to do so for fear of looking ‘silly’ or other reason.”

That sense of safety comes through in other ways too. Some posts have been more everyday than groundbreaking, a dirty office, an out-of-date noticeboard, but that’s part of building trust with teams. When people feel comfortable using a channel, and they can see the feedback being actioned, they use it freely. The meaningful feedback comes through because the barrier to speaking up is gone.

What has been reassuring to the York College leadership team is that nothing submitted through iTrust has raised a whistleblowing concern. 

“It has proved to be a worthwhile exercise because it has given us reassurance that there seems to be very little that we need to be concerned about from a whistleblowing perspective. Nothing has emerged that has given us a concern.”

With iTrust creating a feedback culture staff can trust, it should hopefully stay that way. 

Feedback that matters.