Online Community House rules

Admin_Scope

House rules

Our vision is to give disabled people the opportunity to connect with and support each other.

The online community is a place for you to:

• make friends
• share your experiences
• get the information you need
• have open discussion about issues that matter to you

The online community is not intended as a source of medical or professional advice. We cannot verify or approve information and materials uploaded by members.

The opinions expressed on the online community do not reflect Scope policy.

We do not tolerate any behaviour that negatively affects the online community team, volunteers, and members.

Be civil

Think about how your words might affect others. Be polite and respectful.

You might disagree with someone’s view, but that is not a reason to be rude or offensive.

We expect our members to treat each other as they would like to be treated. If we think you are not being civil, we reserve the right to right to restrict or remove your comments and your account.

Be supportive

Many people come to the online community for help, or to help others. Many more come to simply chat.

Please remember some people will be looking for support and may feel stressed or overwhelmed. They might not respond well to criticism or insensitive comments.

If we think your words are harming others’ wellbeing, we reserve the right to remove your comments or account.

Be safe

Please be careful about sharing information.

• Always check that information is correct and appropriate.
• Do not present opinions as facts.
• Share reputable sources of information.

You are free to talk about your feelings and emotions, but please do not share content that might have a dangerous impact on others. For example, if it encourages or provides information about ending someone’s life.

If you are feeling:

• preoccupied
• anxious
• upset, or
• angry

Please consider taking a break or a time-out to calm down and refocus.

Content we do not allow

We may remove, edit or moderate content if we believe it is:

• impersonating someone
• against the law
• harassing, inaccurate, defamatory, abusive, disrespectful, offensive, pornographic, racist, sexist, threatening, vulgar, obscene, hateful or otherwise inappropriate
• insensitive
• misleading
• dangerous to others
• advertising
• crowdfunding or asking for money
• infringing copyright
• personal information, like address, email or phone number
• not relevant to the community
• medical advice

We may close or hide discussions if we feel they threaten the safety of the online community. Material will be removed as soon as possible.

This is to protect our members and the online community as a whole.

Admin_Scope

Upholding the rules

We do what we can to keep conversation flowing, but this is only possible if our members remain both safe and civil. If we feel the presence of any comment or person conflicts with the interests of the online community, we reserve the right to immediately and without notice:

• moderate or remove any messages, comments and discussions
• restrict or remove any member’s access to the online community

There will be times when we will need to step in. When this happens, we understand not everyone will agree with our decisions.

If you would like us to review a moderation decision, please message @Community_Scope or email community@scope.org.uk.

Where possible, we will inform you of the review outcome within 5 working days.

Our decisions are final.

Moderation

We may use tools to keep conversations civil, supportive and safe.

These include, but are not limited to:

Gentle reminders

We may use a gentle reminder if, for example, you swear persistently.

Account pauses

We may pause your account if we think you may benefit from time away from the online community. If we pause your account, you will not be able to post for a period of time.

Queuing comments

We may queue your comments if we think it is useful to review them before they appear on the online community. Your comments will not be public until we approve them.

Pausing discussions

We may pause a discussion to allow members to cool off. For example, if it seems tensions are escalating.

Closing discussions

We may pause a discussion while we review its content. We may close a discussion if we decide it is doing more to harm than help the online community.

Hiding discussions

We may hide a discussion to allow us to review it. For example, we might hide a discussion on a difficult topic, while we decide whether its content is appropriate for the online community. We will tell the original poster we have hidden their discussion, where possible and appropriate.

3 strikes policy

We operate a ‘3 strikes and you’re out’ policy.

The 3 strikes are:

• a caution
• a final warning
• a ban

You may receive a strike against your account, if we feel your recent contributions have done more to harm than help the online community.

We do not do this lightly, but our decision is final.

Protect yourself and others online

Please join us in keeping the Scope community a safe, supportive place for people to talk and swap ideas.

Please let us know if you feel behaviour is threatening or disturbing.

Report any discussions that could compromise our community’s safety.

Here are some resources you may find useful:

• The Metropolitan Police Service's advice for staying safe online
• Get Safe Online
• Online safety: what parents need to know (NSPCC)
• Online safety for teenagers (Family Lives)
• Safer Net advice for people with learning difficulties
• Dimensions internet safety (easy read PDF 1.53MB)
• Internet Safety for Teens guide (Staysafe.org)

Terms and conditions

Read the full terms and conditions for using this website.

Contact us

If you have any concerns about your safety using the Scope community or about others' behaviour, please message @Community_Scope or email community@scope.org.uk.