Purpose
We use social media to communicate important information about our services, events and campaigns, and to engage with residents, businesses and visitors.
This policy sets out how we manage our public-facing social media accounts, how we interact with users, and what standards apply.
Council staff use social media in line with internal policies and professional standards.
Our accounts
Our social media accounts are:
@northdevoncouncil
@Barnstaple Pannier Market
@Live Love Local
@North Devon Climate Action
@North Devon Foodfest
@North Devon Crematorium
@northdevoncouncil
@barnstaplepanniermarket
@northdevonfoodfest
@northdevonclimateaction
@livelovelocalnorthdevon
Nextdoor
@northdevoncouncil
@North Devon Council
Only accounts listed above should be considered official.
Monitoring and response
Our main accounts are monitored Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm, excluding bank and public holidays.
We aim to respond to messages within one working day. Response times may vary depending on demand.
We do not monitor social media 24/7. Social media must not be used to report emergencies.
Contacting us on social media
We welcome general questions and feedback via social media.
We cannot:
- discuss personal or confidential matters
- provide updates on individual cases
- process complaints, legal requests or service requests
Where appropriate, we will direct users to the correct contact channel.
Moderation and acceptable use
We aim to maintain safe and respectful online spaces.
We may remove, hide or report content that includes:
- abusive, offensive or threatening language
- hate speech, discrimination or harassment, including sexual harassment
- personal attacks on staff, councillors or members of the public
- misleading or false information
- obscene or inappropriate content, including images, emojis and links
- unlawful or harmful content
- spam or promotional content
- personal information
We may block or mute users who repeatedly breach these rules.
Escalation and safeguarding
Serious issues may be escalated to:
- platform moderators
- the police
- safeguarding teams
- legal representatives
We may retain records of harmful content as evidence.
Privacy and data protection
Social media is a public space. Users should not share personal information.
We will not discuss personal cases via social media.
All data is handled in line with data protection law and our Privacy Notice.
Political neutrality and pre-election period
We always remain politically neutral.
During the pre-election period, we will:
- limit activity to factual information
- avoid political content or debate
- not engage with candidates or campaigns
Journalists, councillors and MPSs should contact: communications@northdevon.gov.uk
Our interactions and approach
- Following, liking or sharing content does not constitute endorsement.
- We do not engage in party-political debate or promote political viewpoints.
- We may remove comments that attempt to involve the council in political campaigning.
- We will correct inaccurate information when appropriate and where resourcing allows.
- We aim to maintain a polite, professional and impartial tone at all times.
Accessibility
We are committed to accessible content, including:
- plain language
- alt text where possible
- avoiding text-heavy images
- captioning videos where possible
External content
By tagging us or submitting content to our accounts, you give us permission to reuse or share it on our channels.
Do not submit content you do not have rights to use.
We may decline to share images or videos that contain:
- identifiable children without consent
- unsafe behaviour
- copyrighted or commercial materials
- political messaging
We sometimes work with partners, community groups or local businesses to promote campaigns or events.
Where posts are sponsored or part of a paid partnership, they will be clearly labelled.
We may share third-party content when relevant, but this does not imply endorsement.
Changes to this policy
We review this policy regularly.