Our social media community guidelines
For everyone interacting with us on social media

We use social media to support and champion our members, and to inform, inspire and educate the public about the positive impact of counselling and psychotherapy.Ìý

We welcome conversation and engagement on our platforms, and we’re committed to making sure our channels remain safe, respectful, and inclusive spaces for all.Ìý

These guidelines outline what we expect from anyone interacting with us on social media, whether through posts, comments, tags, or direct messages. They explain how we may respond if those expectations aren’t met.Ìý

°Â±ð’v±ð also ±è³Ü²ú±ô¾±²õ³ó±ð»å guidance on the use of social media for our members to support them in their use of these channels as professionals.Ìý

We monitor our channels Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm (excluding bank holidays). You can also get in touch through our Contact us page.Ìý

Our expectationsÌý

Please follow these community guidelines when interacting with our content on social media:Ìý

• be respectful of others and their views. Healthy debate is welcome, but personal attacks are not.Ìý
• don’t post or comment with anything that could identify a client, or that breaches confidentiality in any way. Please see our social media guidance for members for more about client confidentiality and social media.Ìý
• don’t post or comment with anything that is hateful, harassing, discriminatory, or harmful, including racism, xenophobia, transphobia, homophobia, sexism, or any other form of hate speech.Ìý
• don’t use threatening, obscene, inflammatory, profane, or abusive language in posts or comments.Ìý
• don’t make defamatory or libellous statements.Ìý
• don’t post or comment repeatedly about the same issue or share off-topic or spam content.Ìý
• if you’re a member, please ensure your social media interactions align with our Ethical Framework.Ìý

Moderation of posts and commentsÌý

We won’t remove comments on our posts simply because they disagree with us or criticise us. However, if a post we’re tagged in or any comments violate our community guidelines, we may take action.Ìý

Depending on the nature of the comment and the platform, this may include:Ìý

• hiding the comment so it’s no longer visible to others.Ìý
• deleting the comment (where the platform allows).Ìý
• blocking the individual from further interaction with our page or account if the behaviour persists or is particularly serious.Ìý

We’ll use our discretion when deciding which action to take. While we aim to be transparent, we may not always notify individuals directly when we remove or hide content, especially in cases of severe or repeated breaches.Ìý

We may hide posts or comments that include words, emojis, images or GIFs that could be reasonably misinterpreted as harmful or inappropriate, even if the intent is unclear, to protect our audience. We take a cautious approach to safeguarding our community.Ìý

In very rare or exceptional cases, such as when a post repeatedly breaches our community guidelines, we may disable commenting on that post to maintain a respectful and safe environment for all.Ìý

Please note that while we may take these steps where necessary and able, we can’t control everything that’s said on social media or what we’re tagged in. There may be content we’re unable to remove.Ìý

Direct messages and private interactionsÌý

We recognise that you may want to talk to Â鶹ԭ´´ via direct/private messages on our social media platforms.Ìý

We won’t tolerate abusive, threatening, or harassing language in any form, including in private messages.Ìý

If private messages breach our community guidelines we’ll take appropriate action, which may include blocking the sender or reporting the behaviour to the platform.Ìý

Reporting harmful contentÌý

If a post or comment on one of our channels violates both our guidelines and the platform’s own community standards, we may report it to the platform directly.Ìý

Blocking usersÌý

Blocking is only used in serious or repeated breaches of our guidelines. If someone continues to post or comment in ways that are harmful, abusive, or otherwise inappropriate, we may block them from our page or account.Ìý

We may provide a warning first, but we reserve the right to block users at any time, with or without prior notice.Ìý

Member complaintsÌý

We can’t comment on specific complaints about our members or ongoing conduct cases on social media. You can read more about our conduct procedures on our website or contact our professional conduct team at professional_conduct@bacp.co.uk.Ìý

Questions or feedbackÌý

If you have questions or feedback about our social media channels or these community guidelines, please contact us at communications@bacp.co.ukÌý

Our active social media channelsÌý

We currently post and engage on:Ìý

• FacebookÌý
• InstagramÌý
• LinkedInÌý

We no longer use X (formerly Twitter).Ìý