Appeals & Complaints

1. Purpose

This Appeals & Complaints Policy is adopted by Glowflare Limited and applies to the operation of the Festival.

Throughout this policy, “the Festival” refers to the film festival organised and operated by Glowflare Limited.

The Festival is committed to maintaining a professional, respectful, safe and inclusive environment for all individuals participating in Festival activities.

This policy establishes a clear and proportionate process for requesting administrative appeals and for receiving, investigating and resolving complaints where they arise.

The objectives of this policy are to:

• Provide a fair, transparent and accessible process for resolving concerns.
• Ensure appeals and complaints are handled consistently, professionally and without bias.
• Protect the rights and wellbeing of participants, staff, volunteers and the Festival.
• Promote confidence in the Festival’s governance and decision-making.

2. Scope

This policy applies to all individuals and organisations involved with the Festival, including but not limited to:

• Filmmakers and entrants;
• Audience members and guests;
• Staff, volunteers and contractors;
• Judges, screeners and programmers;
• Sponsors, partners, suppliers and media representatives.

This policy applies to appeals and complaints relating to:

• Behaviour or professional conduct;
• Customer service or operational matters;
• Accessibility or inclusion;
• Safety or safeguarding concerns;
• Breaches of Festival policies, procedures or the Code of Conduct;
• Administrative decisions where an appeal is permitted under this policy.

3. Responsibilities

The Festival Director is responsible for administering this policy and ensuring that appeals and complaints are managed fairly, consistently and in accordance with this procedure.

The Festival Director will:

• Acknowledge and oversee appeals and complaints;
• Ensure appropriate investigations are undertaken where required;
• Maintain appropriate records;
• Ensure outcomes are communicated in writing;
• Appoint an independent reviewer where a conflict of interest exists.

All individuals involved in Festival activities are expected to cooperate with any investigation conducted under this policy.

4. Complaints Procedure

Complaints should be submitted in writing as soon as reasonably practicable after the matter giving rise to the complaint.

Complaints must be submitted by email to:

contact@glowflarehorrorfestival.com

The subject line should read:

Complaint – [Brief Description]

Where possible, complaints should include:

• The complainant’s full name and contact details;
• A clear description of the concern;
• Relevant dates, times and locations;
• The names of any individuals involved, where known;
• Any supporting documents, photographs or other relevant evidence.

Anonymous complaints may be considered where appropriate. However, anonymity may limit the Festival’s ability to investigate and respond fully.

5. Complaint Handling

The Festival is committed to handling complaints professionally, respectfully, fairly and confidentially wherever reasonably practicable.

Upon receipt of a complaint, the Festival will:

1. Acknowledge receipt within five (5) working days.
2. Review the information provided.
3. Request additional information where necessary.
4. Investigate the matter where appropriate.
5. Issue a written outcome.

The Festival aims to provide a substantive response within 30 calendar days. Where additional time is required due to the complexity of the matter, the complainant will be informed and provided with an updated timeframe.

Possible outcomes may include:

• No further action;
• Clarification or explanation;
• Informal resolution or mediation;
• Recommendations or corrective action;
• Warnings or restrictions relating to Festival participation;
• Removal from Festival activities where appropriate;
• Improvements to Festival policies or procedures.

The Festival will not tolerate retaliation against any individual who raises a genuine concern in good faith.

6. Confidentiality

Appeals and complaints will be handled confidentially wherever reasonably practicable.

Information will only be shared with those who require access for the purpose of investigating or resolving the matter, or where disclosure is required by law.

All personal information will be processed in accordance with the Festival’s Privacy & Data Protection Policy and applicable data protection legislation.

7. Malicious or Vexatious Complaints

The Festival encourages concerns to be raised in good faith.

Where a complaint is found to be knowingly false, malicious, vexatious or submitted primarily to harass another individual or damage the reputation of the Festival, appropriate action may be taken. This may include restricting future participation in Festival activities where considered necessary and proportionate.

8. Safeguarding and Serious Concerns

Complaints involving safeguarding, harassment, discrimination, abuse, threats to safety or concerns relating to vulnerable individuals will be treated as a priority.

Where appropriate, the Festival may take immediate protective action and refer matters to the relevant statutory authorities or other appropriate agencies.

9. Administrative Appeals

An appeal is a request for the Festival to review an administrative decision where it is believed that:

• Festival procedures were not followed;
• Festival rules or eligibility requirements were incorrectly applied; or
• A material administrative error affected the outcome of the decision.

Appeals are intended to address administrative or procedural matters only and are not an opportunity to challenge artistic judgement.

Appeals must:

• Be submitted in writing within 14 calendar days of the original decision;
• Be emailed to contact@glowflarehorrorfestival.com;
• Use the subject line Appeal – [Brief Description];
• Clearly explain the grounds for appeal; and
• Include any supporting evidence.

The Festival will acknowledge receipt of an appeal within five (5) working days and aims to issue a final written decision within 45 calendar days. Where additional time is required, the appellant will be informed of the reason for the delay and provided with an updated timeframe.

10. Decisions That Cannot Be Appealed

To preserve the integrity and independence of the Festival’s artistic and judging processes, the following decisions are final and are not subject to appeal:

• Film selection decisions;
• Programming decisions;
• Jury deliberations or scoring;
• Award results;
• Artistic or curatorial judgement.

11. Independence and Conflicts of Interest

Appeals and complaints are normally managed by the Festival Director.

Where an appeal or complaint concerns the Festival Director, or where there is an actual or perceived conflict of interest, the matter will be referred to an independent reviewer appointed by the Festival who has had no previous involvement in the matter.

The independent reviewer will consider the matter fairly, impartially and independently before issuing a final written decision.

The decision of the Festival or appointed independent reviewer shall be final.

12. Records

The Festival will maintain confidential records of appeals, complaints, investigations and outcomes.

Records will be retained only for as long as necessary and in accordance with applicable data protection legislation and the Festival’s Privacy & Data Protection Policy.

13. Policy Review

This policy will be reviewed periodically by Glowflare Limited to ensure it remains effective, reflects current legislation and recognised good governance practices, and continues to support the fair operation of the Festival.

Glowflare Limited reserves the right to amend this policy where necessary.