Helping educators conduct rock-solid investigations into complaints and allegations

WELCOME TO BASALT SOLUTIONS LTD

When complaints and allegations are made about the conduct of students or staff, we help you complete investigations everyone can trust. We’re not lawyers. We’re not an accountancy firm. We are a family-owned consultancy with experience across education and investigations – addressing a growing challenge for schools and tertiary education providers. On request, we also provide our independent investigation services to select clients outside education.

Investigations involving students and staff

Education providers regularly deal with complaints, grievances and allegations involving children, young people, parents and staff. Whatever you’re responding to, it’s important to find out what really happened before making any decisions. This can take a lot of time and be hard to get right.

Imagine if there was one place schools and tertiary education providers could turn to for support with any kind of investigation – an experienced investigator who understands the education sector. Well, that’s exactly where we come in. We’re a full-service consultancy focussed on helping educators develop their own investigation skills in addition to providing an independent investigation and review service.

We support day schools, boarding schools, universities, polytechnics, and residential facilities. Based in Christchurch, New Zealand, we work with education providers across Australasia.

We also conduct independent investigations and reviews for select clients outside the education sector upon request.

What we help you with

We specialise in dealing with issues that involve allegations of misconduct or breaches of behavioural standards, including:

Bullying
Harassment
Violence
Sexual abuse
Fraud
Substance abuse
Corruption

Investigation experience with education sector understanding

Basalt Solutions is owned and operated by Tim and Natalie Sterne. Tim is a former teacher and highly experienced criminal and civil investigator. Natalie is an experienced school teacher who has also worked as a professional practice lecturer.

Many providers investigate and leave. They don’t help your team learn how to do it themselves. We give you the chance to grow your own skills, so you can handle more in the future.

Other providers often don’t understand how schools and tertiary institutions actually work. We do. We’ve worked in education. We talk to educators every day. We know the complexities and layers. We understand your world, enabling us to ask the right questions and see things others might miss.

If you’re conducting investigations in a school or tertiary institution, we believe you deserve specialised support from someone who understands your unique situation.

Why work with us?

Tim’s highly structured approach to managing risk, the experience and insight he brings to a wide range of potential risks, and his relatable and approachable manner make him an absolute asset to any principal’s network.

Tim knows his stuff.