Social media comments policy
Forest of Dean District Council welcomes discussion and encourages open and constructive debate on its social media channels. We recognise that people may not always agree with the council, and respectful debate is an important part of democracy and two-way communication.
Comment moderation
The council does not actively moderate comments before they are published. However, profanity filters are set to a high level across our social media platforms.
Most comments are allowed to remain visible. However, the council reserves the right to hide or delete comments that fall into the categories listed below.
Comments that may be hidden or removed
Comments may be hidden or deleted if they include:
- offensive, abusive, malicious or disrespectful language, or personal attacks against individuals or organisations (including defamatory comments)
- content that incites hatred or discrimination based on religion, race, ethnicity, gender, sexuality, disability, nationality or any other protected or personal characteristic
- personal information about yourself or others, such as home addresses, phone numbers or email addresses
- spam, repetitive content, or third-party advertising or promotions
- party political messages or the promotion of political parties, candidates or political events
- swear words or language that could reasonably cause offence
- libellous content or comments that break the law, including references to illegal activity or breaches of copyright
- content that spreads incorrect or misleading information, whether unintentionally (misinformation) or deliberately (disinformation)
The council also reserves the right to hide or remove posts from persistent, malicious or vexatious commentators (sometimes referred to as ‘trolls’) who deliberately post content intended to provoke or disrupt discussion.
Comments may also be removed if they are:
- posted on content that is more than six months old
- not relevant to the topic being discussed
Council responses on social media
The council aims to read all comments posted on its social media channels and will respond where it is relevant and appropriate to do so.
- Social media pages are monitored during the working week, and responses are usually posted during these times.
- Pages are also monitored outside normal working hours for content that breaches this policy, but responses may not be provided until the next working day.
In general, the council may:
- respond to questions
- correct factually inaccurate information
- reply to individual comments or provide a single response where there is a high volume of similar comments
- choose not to reply, depending on the circumstances
Supplementary or follow-up questions may be answered where appropriate. However, the council may stop responding if behaviour becomes unreasonable or vexatious.
Any requests for information under the Freedom of Information Act will be passed on through the appropriate process.
In some cases, the council may choose to continue a conversation privately, for example via direct message or email. Where appropriate, we may also direct people to Customer Services, an online form, or another council service so their enquiry can be handled fully.
Removing or banning followers
Forest of Dean District Council may remove or block users from its social media accounts if they repeatedly breach this policy, including persistent vexatious behaviour.
Where possible, the council will first ask individuals to stop posting offensive, inappropriate or unlawful content. However, the council reserves the right to act immediately where necessary.
Accounts that appear to be fake may also be removed or blocked.