Social Media Policy and Guidelines

Purpose of the Policy:

To set the standard of behaviour expected for the use of social networking tools.

As a general principle, we expect all athletes, parents, coaches and helpers to treat electronic communication the same way that they would treat direct face­ to face communication.

Social Media :

Social Media is any tool or service that facilitates conversation over the internet.

Examples of tools include Facebook, Twitter and also platforms such as YouTube,

Flickr , Snapchat and Instagram. Blogs and wikis are also part of Social media.

Some rules we would like you to follow:

  •  Do not publish comments about your fellow athletes/other clubs/coaches or officials. Unless you have permission from the individual it is safer not to pass comments which could infringe their right to privacy
  • If you see any post connected to a club member/the club that you feel uncomfortable with, please tell your coach or our Welfare Officers
  • No coach will be your social networking friend…they will refuse as it will breach their code of conduct. If a coach needs to communicate with you, they will contact your parent if you are under 18
  • If you are 18­ – 21, you may have been an athlete first and then a coach. You may still be friends with athletes who are younger than you and have their contact details. Please let our Welfare Officers know about this situation, and the club will ensure that you are not placed in the position of being the primary coach for the young people who you are familiar with, except on an occasional basis.
  • Try only to share pictures /videos/comments that you yourself would not object to.
  • No athlete/ coach /parent or helper may use the club logo or associated trademarks without express advance permission from the committee.

Permission is only likely to be granted for posts directly linked to agreed club activities on identified club sessions or social events agreed in advance by the committee. Any breach of this rule is likely to result in a warning under the Disciplinary procedure. A repeated breach will result in Disciplinary action taken by the club. Any individual found to be using the club logo to endorse products/ training sessions / communications which have not been agreed by our committee and do not form a part of the club offer will be liable to disciplinary action , which may result in being removed from the club. The club will ask for unauthorised use of our logo to cease immediately.

  • No photographs in changing rooms…you may be invading someone’s personal space and may also need permission to take a photo in a public area.
  • Always ask for permission of your parent, the other person and a club officer before uploading the picture of another person

How the Club will protect all members:

  • The club is responsible for vetting our social media and ensuring that users are over 13 , and that content cannot be construed as offensive
  • All photographs that are placed on Social media must be vetted by the Club Facebook/Social Media administrator to ensure that we meet our safeguarding and due diligence responsibilities
  • The social media administrator will vet messages/photos to ensure that they are appropriate, and can delete posts/comments if they feel that the content breaches any of the guidelines
  • All coaches/administrators will communicate with under 18 athletes via their parent/carer unless pre­agreed with parent/carer in writing
  • All breaches of the guidelines will be reported to committee for consideration of further action, which could include disciplinary action

What you can do to protect yourself:

  • Never use your real name in chat rooms. Pick an online nickname
  • Never tell anyone personal details even if they offer you details about themselves
  • Do not go alone to meetings you have arranged with someone you have only been in contact with online.
  • Take an adult with you …to a public place.
  • Do not respond to rude/offensive messages. Keep a record of the message and show it to an adult for their view and help
  • If you don’t know who an Email is from or recognise a link…Don’t open it!
  • Take a look at “HandsOff” an NSPCC Magazine for teenagers with lots of safe surfing tips
  • If you are worried about any message/picture or contact that you have received, from a stranger or “friend” TELL someone you trust. Try not to delete the message/picture as it may become important if some action is needed.

Guidelines drawn up using CPSU format/EA Guidelines

Last Updated November 2018

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