It will depend on your policy. Often the Line Manager can be the investigatory officer unless your policy excludes it.

The Hearing Officer will need to be independant

Hi Darren

I agree with Keith that the crucial point is the separation of investigator and the person/people conducting the hearing.

It is possible that this is not about a rational judgment on the point at which you should not be involved in the investigation, but a point-scoring exercise by the TU rep. You have some choices to make. You could clarify Keith's point to the employee and the TU rep and continue with the investigation or you could decide to step aside. Do you actually have anyone else who could do this? In small organisations, compromises sometimes have to be made and the Acas Code of Practice recognises this. If you continue with the investigation, the matter goes to a hearing and the outcome is adverse to the employee, it's probable that the employee will appeal on the grounds that they didn't think the investigation was fair. Stepping aside would be the most hassle-free way to go, but you might feel confident that your investigation will stand up to external scrutiny.

I would also take into account the nature of the allegations. If the outcome would probably be a sanction less than dismissal if the allegations were upheld, I would be more likely to press on.

Thanks all. Weve opted for the easy route and chose someone else to conduct the investigation. Shouldnt really have much impact apart from the fact that it may go against the employees case as I can now be called as a witness and give a statement... which probably wont go their way.