CLUB POLICY ON SOCIAL MEDIA
- Staff Guidance
When using social media such as internet sites, text message or other forms of digital communication staff must abide to the following policies to protect themselves and their players. Employee whether full time or Part time must not:
- Use text or emails for personal conversations, sending pictures, jokes or other items of a personal nature or engage in any ‘banter’ or comments with or about children at the club.
- Use internet or web based mobile phones or other form of communications to send personal messages of a non football nature to a child or young person.
- Respond to emails or texts from young people other than those directly related to club matters. Use language that is directly (or could be misinterpreted as being) racist, sexist, derogatory, threatening, abusive or sexualised in tone.
- Accept as a friend, young players or any person employed or volunteering at the club who is U18 on social networking sites.
- Share your own personal social networking sites with children or young people involved at the football club or ask them to be your ‘friend’.
- Make contact with children or young people known through football outside of the football context on social networking sites.
- Post personal comments in relation to the management or operation of the club, club officials. match officials, children, parent/guardian or opposition teams or any family members of those groups.
- Delete any inappropriate text or email messages sent to you as they may form part of any subsequent investigation.
2. Parent Guidance
- Know who the club Child Protection Officer is and how to contact them if you have any concerns about the content of club web pages or in relation to the welfare of your child
- Ensure you are aware of how coaches, managers and other members of the club should communicate with your child
- Show an interest in the communications between the club, you and your child. Open communication about club activities/issues often means that concerns are picked up early and issues can be resolved more easily
- Familiarise yourself with The Football League’s guidance for clubs in relation to websites, text messaging and social networking sites
- Understand the club’s communication practices. If the club uses text messages or emails as a source of communication you may request to be copied into anything sent to your child
- Ensure your child understands that they should tell someone that they trust about communications that make them feel uncomfortable or when they’ve been asked not to tell their parent/carer or coach about the communication
- Remember as a parent/carer of a child at the club you and your child are responsible for and need to abide by the club policy, The Scottish Football League Policy Guidance and The SFA Rules and Regulations regarding comments that you place online about the club or club officials, The Scottish Proffesional Football League, players, managers, match officials, opposing teams players or family members of any of those groups
3. Annan Athletic Community Football
Annan Athletic Community Football Social Media Policy
- Inform the club Child Protection Officer as soon as possible if you or your child receives any inappropriate communication from any member of staff/volunteer or other person associated with the club and save the communication
- Parents must not use social media to speak ill of the club or any staff or associates or to comment on players, training or matches.
- Parents must not reveal any information they may have received about a player
4. Player’s Guidance
Players must not:
- Post, host, text or email things that are hurtful, insulting, offensive, abusive, threatening, or racist as this would go against football club’s rules and could also be against the law. Or post personal comments in relation to the management or operation of the club, club officials, match officials, players, opposition team member(s), or any family members of those above.
- Engage in any personal communications, ‘banter’ or comments with staff / volunteer(s), players opposition teams.
- Give out personal details online including mobile numbers, email addresses or social networking account access to people you don’t know well offline
- Invite any adult involved with the club to become your friends online, or accept them as a friend on any social network site. They have been told they must not accept such invitations
- Use internet, web-based, phone or any other form of communication to send personal messages of a non football nature to any member of staff/volunteer at the club
- Delete inappropriate text or email messages sent to you as they may form part of any subsequent investigation
- Use inappropriate language.
- Reveal information about training, fixtures and contractual agreements etc using social media posts.
Remember ALL staff, parents and players are representing Annan Athletic Football Club by association so inappropriate posts on public social media sites or private messaging services could result in a potential disciplinary procedure at the discretion of the Board of Directors.
Document updated November 2022
