4 February 2021

CNWL supports and promotes the use of social media by the organisation and its staff as a progressive conversation and useful way of disseminating information, hearing feedback, building networks and advancing career development. 

We also know that the public will use these channels to bring matters to the attention of the Trust and to staff members and this is useful too.

As public servants CNWL promotes professional standards in social media and have chosen the Health and Care Professions Council guidance 2017 to set standards that all staff will follow; in particular to:

  • Communicate appropriately, being polite and respectful
  • Be honest and trustworthy
  • Respect confidentiality; in words and photographs
  • Respecting boundaries.

Every effort will be made to answer questions and comments from the public by staff, but concerns should be taken off-line through other problem-solving channels.

At the same time, and with lots of tolerance for firmly held views and opinions, staff are entitled to mutual respect so can use this policy to discontinue conversations that do not uphold, reciprocally, the standards of respect that staff themselves must show the public. 

To show the social media community that we have a code of behaviour to uphold, when such discontinuance occurs staff will refer to our policy about mutual respect.

Individual staff members may choose to block some people in this situation, whilst the organisation will only do so in extreme situations, particularly threatening or abusive behaviours. We will continue to read comments people make even if we do not respond to them on that channel.