Social Media Policy

Members are responsible for what they post and must exercise caution and common sense when doing so.  Due to the interconnected nature of social media activities, members should bear in mind that what they post can be seen by others who could be current members, officials, suppliers or prospective suppliers, officials, or ex members. 

Members should not in any circumstances, post comments or images which: 

• Identify or could identify Triple Crown ARSC, which may have any negative or defamatory connotations 
• May contain any commercially sensitive or confidential information that has not been endorsed by Triple Crown ARSC 
• May be subject to copyright. 
• Members should not post any comments and/or images that could be interpreted as being inflammatory, malicious, or slanderous against others. Members are also reminded that they should not post anything that could be described as discriminatory or offensive to others. 

Triple Crown ARSC recognise that there may, in certain circumstances, be a need for local information regarding activity being undertaken to be published via social media; for example, where doing this assists us to raise our profile and meet expectations of external bodies such as GBSA, Sports Wales, Worldskate etc.  Where this is the case, guidance should be sought from the head of Triple Crown ARSC who will ensure that any postings or pages which are set up are uniform and approved. 

For example, any pages reflecting the work of Triple Crown ARSC within social media needs to have correct logos and approved information attached, and be linked to one another, whilst still retaining their local angle. 

If you see or are aware of any content on social media that reflects poorly on Triple Crown ARSC or its members or may contain commercially sensitive or confidential information you should contact the head of Triple Crown ARSC. 

All members are responsible for protecting our world of artistic roller skating reputation. 

A breach of any of the above will potentially be treated as misconduct and may result in disciplinary action up to and including suspension. Disciplinary action may be considered regardless of whether the breach is committed during skating or personal time, and regardless of what platform is used. Any member suspected of breaching this guidance will be required to co-operate with an investigation. 

Members are reminded that Triple Crown ARSC has policies and procedures in place which cover confidentiality, equality, harassment and discrimination, and as such they should not disclose any information about members, Triple Crown ARSC, its officials, National and International governing bodies or other associated organisations, or write in such a way that it is likely to damage the reputation of Triple Crown ARSC or offend or upset members, officials, coaches,  suppliers or other persons associated with Triple Crown ARSC.. 

Some examples of breaches may be: 

• Adverse comments about judging following a competition/championship. 
• Posting information that may bring Triple Crown ARSC into disrepute. 
• Any material which has the effect of undermining any section of GBSA governance 
• Use of inappropriate posts which promotes bad language, nudity, or humour of a sexual nature. 
• Adverse comments about any official, member or supplier irrespective of the nature 
• Portrayal of a member in any situation which could be viewed as inappropriate  
• Any comment, picture or situation that may reflect on the member being viewed in an inappropriate manner, detrimental to that of an athlete or professional member of Triple Crown ARSC 
• Criticism of sanctioned competitions or events based on location, directors, staffing or any other element which can be interpreted as having a negative reputational impact on the prestige of the competition in question 

The intention of any post made is not relevant in considering a breach of this policy.  

Where a club or individual has made a post on social media that may breach this policy, the matter shall be referred to a discipline panel to determine if the post brings the sport into disrepute. 

The following policy outlines the best practice that Triple Crown ARSC must adhere to. 

• All social media accounts and messaging platforms must be password-protected if possible and at least two members of designated administrators will have access to each account and password. 
• The account will be monitored by at least two designated administrators, in order to provide transparency, who will have been appointed by the club’s committee. 
• The administrators must not 'friend' or 'follow' junior members or parents using the club’s account.  
• Uploading of photos or video should be in line with Triple Crown’s guidance on photography and video and with the full consent of those featured and their parent/carer. 
• Club social media should not be used to engage in any conduct that would not be acceptable at the Club’s events or while in the presence of the club’s members.  
• Any use of social media should respect the law, including those laws governing defamation, discrimination, harassment, and copyright and fair use. 
• Administrators should avoid any form of bullying, including cyber-bullying. 
• Administrators should monitor any comments made on the account by visitors on a regular basis and remove any which are incompatible with Triple Crown ARSC policy and values. In the event that a club member had breached any codes of conduct or policies, evidence should be retained, and the relevant disciplinary actions or intervention measures should be taken.
• Confidential information about the club, members other volunteers or anyone else (such as facility providers) should not be shared.  

The following policy outlines the best practice that all involved in Triple Crown ARSC must adhere to 

• It is inappropriate for coaches or volunteers to communicate on a one-to-one basis with junior members by text message/e-mail/instant messaging or through social networking sites.  
• Instant messaging systems should not be used to communicate with junior members under any circumstances 
• Coaches and other volunteers should not personally hold the mobile phone number or email of any junior member. This includes use of applications such as WhatsApp where a user’s number is displayed and visible to a group.  
• Mobile numbers of junior members may be held securely by the club for use in an emergency, such as if the child goes missing from a club event and the parent/carer is not present.   
• Coaches can hold the phone numbers and email addresses of parents/ carers, with their consent, in order to get messages to junior members. It is then the responsibility of the parent/guardian to inform the junior member 
• When sending bulk email use blind copy (Bcc) facility so addresses are kept private 
• Official club Facebook pages used as a forum for members must be set up as a closed group. Members should only accept members of the club as members of the group. This must be stated on the group and the group must be set up for that reason. All Facebook groups must be authorised and managed by the Club Committee.  
• Triple Crown ARSC’s preference over Facebook forums is the use of the dedicated apps designed for this purpose, namely Stack TeamApp which have built in safeguarding and privacy options and can be set up for full parental involvement.  
• All communications via any club channels must relate only to club-related matters. 
• All club coaches must not have any member under the age of eighteen on their personal social media platforms.  

To keep yourself and others safe online:  

• Do not post any personal information online – like your address, email address or mobile number.  
• Think carefully before posting pictures or videos of yourself. Once you have put a picture of yourself online most people can see it and may be able to download it, it is not just yours anymore.  
• Do not post pictures or videos of other people without their permission. 
• Keep your privacy settings as high as possible.  
• Never give out your passwords 
• Do not befriend people you do not know 
• (junior members) Do not request, friend etc your coach or other club volunteer, persons over eighteen. 
• (junior members) Do not meet up with people you have met online. Speak to your parent or another adult you trust about people suggesting you do.  
• Remember that not everyone online is who they say they are 
• Think carefully about what you say before you post something online. Things you post online can stay there forever or other people may share or screenshot them.   
• Respect other people’s views, even if you do not agree with someone else’s views does not mean you need to be rude. 
• (junior members) If you see something online that makes you feel uncomfortable, unsafe, or worried: leave the website, turn off your computer if you want to and tell a trusted adult immediately.   
• Do not use your social media to criticise or bully any other members, skaters or your coaches and managers. 

Remember, be SMART online 

Safe - do I feel safe online?  
Meeting - should I meet someone that I do not know in the real world?  
Accepting - be careful what you click on!  
Reliable - can you be sure what you read on the internet is true?  
Tell - if something online makes  you feel uncomfortable then tell an adult. 

• Volunteers are advised to utilise privacy controls on their social media to ensure that their content is restricted to their contacts and cannot be viewed by non-contacts.   
• Volunteers must not 'friend' or 'follow' junior members or parents from personal accounts on social media.  
• Triple Crown ARSC recognises that some volunteers may also be personal friends of skaters’ parents. In these circumstances, communications relating to the club should be kept separate from personal social media contact, and through the designated channels.   
• Personal social media accounts should not be used to communicate with junior members.   
• Social media should not be used as a medium to criticise members, other volunteers, clubs, facility providers or organisations involved in artistic roller skating.   
• Volunteers should not publish photographs or video of junior members on their personal social media. Where a volunteer’s own child is involved in the junior club, any use of personal photo or video is governed by Triple Crown ARSC policy on this subject for parents and guardians.   
• Volunteers should refrain from posting items that could reflect negatively on the club / GBSA or otherwise embarrass the club / GBSA, including comments or other posts about drug or alcohol abuse, discriminatory, abusive, obscene, or other inappropriate language, content, or insults.   
• Volunteers should not use social media to engage in any conduct that would not be acceptable at the club’s events or while in the presence of the club’s members.  
• Volunteers using social media should respect the law, including those laws governing defamation, discrimination, harassment, and copyright and fair use.  
• Volunteers should avoid any form of bullying, including cyber-bullying.  
• Social media users should respect differences and appreciate diversity of opinions.  
• Volunteers should not use club or GBSA logos, unless specifically authorised to do so.  
• Confidential information about the club, members,  other volunteers, or anyone else (such as facility providers) should not be shared.   
• If you publish content to any website outside of your club, and include reference to your position within the club, then you should use a disclaimer such as: "the postings on this site are my own and do not represent the views of Triple Crown ARSC.”  
• Report to the club designated safeguarding lead any concerns you may have regarding use of social media by any other volunteer or junior member. 

• Parents/guardians are advised to utilise privacy controls on their social media to ensure that their content is restricted to their contacts and cannot be viewed by non-contacts.  
• Parents/guardians must not 'friend' or 'follow' other junior members on personal accounts on social media.  
• Social media should not be used as a medium to criticise or bully, members, other parents, volunteers, clubs, facility providers or organisations involved in artistic roller skating.   
• In line with the Triple Crown ARSC’s Policy on Photography and Video, parents/carers are asked to avoid, where possible, capturing children other than their own in images, and if they do so, not to share those images without the consent of relevant other parents, or to obscure the faces of any other children and any other identifying details.   
• Report to the Club Designated Safeguarding Lead any concerns you may have regarding use of social media by any other volunteer or junior member.  
• Parents/guardians should make themselves aware of online risks, such as grooming, through guidance published by organisations such as the NSPCC and CEOP.