Social Media Use Policy – TrustSTFC
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Social Media Use Policy
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Social Media use policy

Swindon Town Community Mutual Limited
(TrustSTFC)

SOCIAL MEDIA USE POLICY

Introduction

This document is drafted in accordance with the existing Rules adopted pursuant to a resolution of the Swindon Town Community Mutual Limited (the Society) at a General Meeting held on 28th February 2024 and the Best Practice guidance issued by the FSA.

This policy is for all board members, co-opted members, external directors and employees (where appropriate) of the Society.

Communication through social networking websites such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, linkedin and many others is now common practise.

The same common-sense approach applies to this form of communication, as they do to any other, in order to protect the interests and reputation of the Society, the people who represent the organisation, work for the organisation, and our immediate colleagues.

Social Media Usage

  • Do not divulge information which is confidential to the Society, Swindon Town Football Club including its various holding companies (the Club), the County Ground Stadium Custodians Limited (the JV), the Societies members, partners or suppliers.
  • Ensure that they you not conduct yourself in a way that is detrimental to the Society.
  • The Society does have a public profile, and as such can be subject to scrutiny by the media and public. This means we all need to take great care to ensure that you do not at any time use social media in a way that could in any way damage the reputation of colleagues or the Society and those we work with – it means you must behave in a way which ensures there is no negative impact on the Society, your colleagues or the people and organisations we work with and for.
  • No information, contact details, images, recordings or photos obtained by you because of your position at the Society can be used or posted in any way.
  • Privacy and the reputation and feelings of others must be respected at all times. Board members should obtain the permission of other colleagues before posting contact details or photos. It is in all our interests that you must not place on a website or other social media platform any comment, images or information that may cause embarrassment to the Society or to immediate colleagues.
  • As at all times, great care should be taken at all times to avoid using language which could be deemed as offensive. One way of approaching this is to consider how what you were saying would be viewed if it was broadcast as an interview with you.
  • Board members should assume that the identity of your position with the Society will be known, or may quickly become known, to others, and that this may well create significant interest and scrutiny. A personal conversation through social media can very quickly become very public, as is the case with any electronic communication. Unless the use or access is strictly for Society business purposes, you should certainly not make any posting, statement or comment that could in any way be taken as a Society, Club or JV comment, and never about the business of the Society.

Board members should be aware that blogs may create documents which the courts can order to be disclosed for use in litigation.

Disclaimer

All biographies on personal Twitter accounts or other social media accounts should state that “the views expressed are personal and not those of TrustSTFC” As with all our policies, any suspected breach of this policy will be treated seriously and investigated and may result in disciplinary action