WhatsApp Communities Terms

Be kind, courteous and professional at all times.

Do not post anything that could be reasonably viewed as bullying, harassment, discriminatory, offensive, or undermining.

Avoid sarcasm, gossip or negative comments about other volunteers, young people, families, partner organisations or staff.

Disagreements should be handled constructively and offline where possible – not argued out in the group.

Do not share identifiable information about young people (names + photos + locations, etc.) in the group unless it is necessary, lawful and in line with Scouts’ safeguarding and photography guidelines.

Do not post anything that could compromise the safety, dignity or privacy of young people, families or volunteers.

Any safeguarding concerns must be raised through normal Scouts safeguarding channels, not debated in the group.

Treat names, phone numbers, profile pictures and any other information shared in the group as confidential.

You must not:

Save or use group members’ contact details for non-Scouting or personal purposes, unless agreement from the individual has been obtained (e.g. marketing, side businesses, campaigning).

Add group members to other chats, mailing lists or distribution lists without their consent.

Take screenshots of the group and share them outside the group, unless this is needed for a legitimate reason (e.g. safeguarding or formal reporting).

Any personal data shared in the group must only be used for legitimate Scouting purposes and in line with data protection law (UK GDPR / Data Protection Act 2018) and West Lancs policies.

Keep messages relevant to the purpose of the group.

Do not share:

• Inappropriate or offensive images, memes or videos.
• Party-political content, chain messages, rumours, or unverified “news”.
• Confidential information (e.g. HR issues, complaints, investigations).

If you are not sure whether something is appropriate, don’t post it.

Be mindful of message volume, try to avoid long side-conversations that drowns out important information.

Avoid messaging late at night or very early in the morning unless urgent or clearly time-critical.

Where possible, reply using reactions or direct replies to keep threads tidy.

Make sure your phone is locked and protected with a PIN/password/biometrics.

Do not allow others to use your device in a way that lets them see or post in these groups as if they were you.

Log out of WhatsApp Web/Desktop on shared or public devices.

Group admins (acting on behalf of West Lancs Scout Council) may:

• Remind members of these terms.
• Ask for posts to be edited or removed.
• Remove posts that clearly breach these terms or put others at risk.
• Remove members from the group in cases of repeated or serious breaches, or where needed to protect others.
• Serious concerns (e.g. safeguarding, harassment, data protection breaches) may be escalated through Scouts’ safeguarding, complaints or data protection processes as appropriate.

West Lancs Scout Council may update these terms from time to time.

Continued use of the group after changes are shared will be treated as acceptance of the updated terms.