Use of social media can obviously bring huge benefits – and realistically it would be very difficult for almost any modern charity to operate fully effectivity without it.
Awareness of what a charity does or supports, engagement from supporters and fundraising can be greatly increased through use of social media, but it can also introduce risks of inappropriate or harmful content can be posted - and this can be a problem whether it is posted about your charity or posted by someone associated with you. Most commonly this may involve content that is defamatory, harassing or breaches privacy/data protection laws.
Charities face many reputationally sensitive issues on a regular basis. There can be grave consequences for charities that do not effectively manage their reputation and take the necessary measures to protect it.
The Charity Commission’s guidance on social media is a key document for the charity sector. We would encourage trustees to read the guidance in full, but have highlighted a few extracts and thoughts that are likely to be of interest.
When completing an annual return, all registered charities are now required to confirm to the Commission whether they have certain policies and procedures in place, including for social media. However, the Commission has not created new responsibilities for trustees through its guidance on social media, but has tried to clarify existing duties and develop understanding of appropriate use of social media and the risks it can bring to a charity, so that trustees can act with confidence.
Remit and social media use
The Commission says a charity’s social media use should help achieve the charity’s purpose and in a way that is in the charity’s best interests.
This may be done in a variety of ways, including “to engage with the charity’s beneficiaries or the wider public on issues directly about what the charity is doing or to highlight its policy positions, or in other ways that support delivery of the charity’s purposes.”
Proportionality
Charities using social media are responsible for “agreeing and putting in place a social media policy so that you have internal controls that are appropriate and proportionate for your charity’s needs and which are clear to everyone at the charity using social media”.
It is noted this is the only reference to proportionality throughout the guidance.
Personal social media posts
It adds “trustees, charity employees and any other individuals have the right to exercise their freedom of expression within the law in their communications, including when using social media […] However, trustees should be aware of the potential for content posted by individuals in their personal capacity being associated with the charity.”
The guidance accounts for the fact that the potential for content posted or shared by an individual to have a negative effect on a charity is dependent on who is involved.
It gives a contrasting example of the risk posed by a charity CEO who posts or shares on a personal social media account which clearly states their role at the charity compared to staff or volunteers with less of a profile online or in their community, with the latter presenting a much lower risk that any content they post or share will be associated with the charity.
“Trustees should share guidelines on social media use with their trustees, staff and volunteers, to help show that they have considered potential risks and have appropriate procedures in place to help manage those risks. The guidelines should be appropriate for your charity and how it uses social media….”
Crisis management
Putting a clear crisis management process in place which contains specific details on who is responsible for what when a crisis arises is key, particularly given that a crisis related to social media can often occur and escalate within a matter of minutes.
As part of this preparation, those involved in running, working and volunteering for a charity should all have an awareness of the types of content that should be escalated and how this should be done. The guidance includes a link to the Commission's crisis management policy checklist.
Harmful content
While specific examples are not given, the guidance does provide some commentary on considering whether the specific content being posted could be considered harmful, “what may be harmful to one person might not be considered an issue by someone else, however the UK Safer Internet Centre defines harmful content in simple terms as anything online which causes a person distress or harm.”
A considered approach
In summary, social media is a great and necessary tool for charities in the promotion and publication of their work. While it is helpful that the Commission has issued guidance on its use, it clearly cannot cover off every scenario.
Charities should not however be afraid of using social media. A careful, considerate and sensible approach will generally help with securing the many benefits it can offer.
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