We want our social media platforms to be a welcoming space. We want people to feel comfortable to talk to us and each other. The principles below explain what we will and will not do with our social media. These principles might change, so please check this page regularly.
What we will do
- We will regularly monitor our social media accounts Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm. We also schedule posts to appear outside of these hours. This doesn't mean someone is online checking messages at those times.
- We're keen to hear from you, and we'll read all comments and messages sent to us. We can't reply to every message or comment. But we will get back to you or pass your message on to the relevant team, where appropriate.
- We aim to reply to messages that require a response on the same or next working day, but we can't always guarantee this.
- We'll treat you with the same politeness and respect you'd expect if you were dealing with us in real life or on the phone.
- We may ask you to send an email to us with your contact details or direct you to contact a particular team. We do this so that the right person can help you with your question or concern.
- We have guidance for our staff about personal use of social media and how we will support them with this. CNTW staff can find our Social Network Policy on our intranet.
What we won’t do
- We can't discuss or comment on any individual's care or treatment on social media. This is because it's confidential information and social media is a public space.
- We can't deal with complaints sent to us on social media. If you need to make a formal complaint, go to our complaints page.
- We can't answer clinical or medical questions. The people monitoring our social media accounts aren't healthcare professionals. But we'll do our best to signpost where to get information, advice or support as appropriate. If you need urgent help or you're in crisis, please seek help using the information on our Need Help Now page.
What we’d like you to do in return
We ask that anyone engaging with us on social media does so with courtesy and respect. Please remember that we're human too. The person monitoring the social media account is trying their best to help.
We believe people are entitled to share their views. We won't remove a post or block someone just because they say something negative.
But we will not tolerate posts, messages or comments which:
- Contain hateful or discriminatory comments about things such as disability, race, religion, culture, sexual orientation, gender or identity
- Contain swearing or other profane, defamatory, offensive or violent language
- Are abusive towards members of staff or the public
- Target a member of staff. We take complaints about our employees very seriously. If you have an issue or concern about an individual, please follow our complaints process.
- Contain links to inappropriate material
- Discuss illegal activity
- Share someone's confidential or personal information
- Contain advertising
- Are mean-spirited or intended to cause offence or hurt
If a post, comment or message goes against these standards, we may hide or delete the comment, block the account that posted it, and/ or report it to the social media platform where appropriate. In certain cases, we may send comments to the police or take legal action in the case of threatening, libellous or defamatory posts.
If you have any questions, please get in touch with us by emailing communications