Social Media Guidelines For Administrators
In the general the guidelines of the Diocese of Rochester apply. The following guidelines are specific to us and apply to the Social Media Administrators who post on behalf of Christ Church.
The Social Media Administrators must actively monitor all social media accounts for inappropriate content getting posted on our social media presences. Here are some specific guidelines and explanations for the main social media presences:
Facebook Page
The Christ Church Chislehurst Facebook page is our official, public presence on Facebook. Only Social Media Administrators are able to post on behalf of the page and they do not have access to any private information of those who like the page. So safeguarding issues are of less concern.
Facebook Group
The Christ Church Chislehurst (Church Family) Facebook Group has been set up a for people who come to Christ Church to connect online when they are not physically at church and share life. In order to foster an atmosphere of trust and community, the group and any content posted is not public. Those who wish to join the group, need to request this and should only be admitted, if they a) come to church and b) are 18 or older.
All members of the group can post into the group without restrictions, however Social Media Administrators must actively monitor the group and remove inappropriate content. When a Social Media Administrator removes content, he/she must explain to the content author why the content was removed. Even when judged inappropriate, we should always start from the position that the author probably had the best intentions.
Once a year, the Office Administrator should review the members of the group and remove anyone who is no longer part of the church family with an explanation of why they were removed. If judged necessary, a member can be removed at any time by a Social Media Administrator but an explanation must be given to the removed member.
Personal Facebook Accounts
Personal Facebook accounts should not be used to represent the church or any church groups, mainly because friending such an account gives the admin of the account access to all personal post of its friends. Instead a Facebook page should be considered.
Our Instagram account @ccchislehurst has been set up a) to allow official photographers to post pictures and videos directly to the Life at Christ Church section on our homepage and b) to reach more people via social media. Those who follow our Instagram account give access to their personal pictures/videos. Therefore, Social Media Administrators should immediately unfollow anyone who is under 18 years old.
Our Twitter account @ccchislehurst is our official presence on Twitter. Only Social Media Administrators are able to post on behalf of our church. All posts on Twitter are public and therefore safeguarding issues are of less concern.
For additional safeguarding resource, please refer to the CCPAS website.
