Our social media accounts are monitored from 8:30am to 5pm, Monday to Friday, except on public holidays.
If your query is urgent, serious, or involves personal details, please contact us using an alternative method.
We will endeavour to answer simple queries quickly on social media. However if the matter is complex, requires a lengthy or detailed response or you are not satisfied with our response, you may be directed to a relevant officer or department to discuss further. You may need to submit a Freedom of Information request.
You can also contact your local councillor.
Social media house rules
Our social media channels will feature a variety of information from our services and partners, keeping you up to date with what is happening across the borough. We also use our social media channels during an emergency, such as a period of extreme weather, as a tool to keep our residents informed.
We're here to help in any way that we can, but we expect users to offer us the same level of courtesy that we offer them. We want our social media channels to be safe, appropriate and factually informative spaces.
These social media house rules set out what you can expect from us, and what we expect from you in return, to ensure that our platforms are places for healthy, open and insightful discussion.
By interacting with the council on any social media platform, you are agreeing to comply by our house rules, in addition to the social media platform’s terms of use.
We will:
- Make it clear that it’s us: if you see a corporate Wyre Council account online you can be confident that it is a legitimate source of information. View a list of all our social media accounts.
- Listen: we will try our best to read all messages and comments, and where possible, raise issues with the most relevant part of the organisation. If you have any questions about Wyre Council services or operations, you should contact us via the contact information on our website. If you can’t find contact information on our website for a specific department or service, you can contact our Contact Centre on 01253 891000 or email mailroom@wyre.gov.uk
- Be factual: we will publish information that is factually correct and isn’t politically motivated.
- Be human and polite: we’ll respond to you with the same politeness as we do face-to-face. Your comments and messages are always answered by real people.
Political neutrality
We must remain politically neutral at all times and are unable to reply to, endorse or engage with, any content that is of a party political nature. If you wish to discuss political issues, please contact your local councillor.
What we expect from you
Our aim is to create an online space that is friendly, safe, appropriate and factually informative.
We value constructive feedback about all council services. You are welcome to share your thoughts respectfully. However, comments, replies or posts which breach of our house rules may be removed, and users that persistently break the rules may be blocked.
Be respectful
Treat all users with respect, regardless of their opinions or beliefs. Differing views on a topic the council has posted about are acceptable when expressed respectfully.
We do not tolerate hate speech, and we will remove, in whole or in part, posts that we feel are inappropriate, or discriminatory against any individual or group.
We will remove comments which are rude, unlawful, offensive or threatening.
Be relevant
Ensure your comments are relevant to the content of the post and the topic being discussed. Spam and persistent off-topic content (and/or negative and/or abusive posts in which the aim is to provoke a response) are not permitted.
We will remove comments and posts which advertise products or services, including links to external websites and promotions.
Be accurate
We welcome feedback, discussion and engagement on our social media profiles. However, we will remove comments or posts which we believe are misleading or deceptive. Comments or posts which spread or promote misinformation, disinformation, conspiracy theories or baseless speculation about our staff, services, actions or operations will be deleted.
Maintain privacy
Do not share personal information or engage in doxing (publishing personal information with a malicious purpose). Our staff are doing their jobs. You may disagree with what they do, but it is not appropriate to photograph or name them without permission and publish these details on social media.
No bullying
We do not tolerate bullying or harassment on our social media accounts, just as we don’t tolerate it offline. Do not post comments which are libellous, defamatory, harassing, threatening or abusive and do not name individual council workers or make offensive comments about anyone who works for us.
Please use the council’s formal complaints process if you want to make a complaint about the council or any council staff.
Remember that you are wholly responsible for any content you post, including content that you choose to share.
Enforcing the policy
Comments or interactions which go against our house rules will be removed.
Any accounts repeatedly engaging with our social media spaces in ways which go against our house rules will be given one warning via private message. If it continues, the account will be blocked and/or reported to the relevant social media platform.
We reserve the right to update or change our house rules at any time.