Charity social media - our guide to managing the risks

The use of social media for charities, and those who work and volunteer for them, has been a regular theme in Charity Commission compliance cases in recent years.

The Commission published guidance on charities and social media (the Guidance) in September 2023. The Guidance, which the Commission expects trustees to have read and applied, emphasises that whilst that social media can be a highly effective way for a charity to engage its audiences and communicate about its work there are risks involved which the trustees should plan for.  

Notwithstanding the Commission’s guidance, there have been a number of recent instances where social media use has come under scrutiny. This blog considers a couple of examples which illustrate the issues which can arise in practice.

Media attention

Over the summer, the Stroke Association had to apologise after it posted a series of humorous posts on social media in  July, which led to criticism from beneficiaries and other stakeholders. The posts compared the couple exposed at the Coldplay concert (which hit the mainstream media) to the sudden and devastating impact of a stroke. Whilst the Stroke Association initially defended its post claiming ‘we didn’t make anyone have an affair’ it then acted swiftly to remove them and issue a public statement and apology. The charity also launched an internal investigation.  

The case highlights the backlash that ill-advised posts can have and the importance of robust controls, particularly for charities where the impact can be greater than for those operating outside the third sector – in an ever crowded market competing for donor attention, reputational damage can be difficult to recover from.  

Official warnings

On 8 April this year, the Commission issued an official warning to the charity Palestinian Refugee Project, and disqualified a trustee, after posting “divisive and inflammatory” political material on social media, amid wider governance failings. The trustees at the time, failed to effectively manage the Charity’s website and social media, allowing one trustee to have control of the material which was posted. This led to posts which seemed to downplay acts of terrorism.

The Commission also published an official warning on 9 June this year to the UK Friends of the Association for the Wellbeing of Israel’s Soldiers. The warning was issued as part of an ongoing compliance case relating to the posting of a video on the charity’s website and You Tube in 2021 which showed distressing scenes.

The video raised concerns about governance and the Commission concluded that the trustees had breached their legal duties by failing to implement appropriate oversight of the charity’s website and social media. Control of the website had been outsourced to a former executive director and a PR agency, and content was posted without proper review. 

Disqualification of a trustee

Social media use was also at the heart of the Commission’s order in April 2024 to disqualify Mr Mond, a former trustee, for two and a half years, based on historic social media activity while Mr Mond was a trustee of a number of Jewish charities.

The social media posts, which dated from 2014 to 2021 , were judged by the Commission as threatening the reputation of his charity. This case is worth noting  because it is the first example of a trustee successfully overturning a disqualification order from the Charity Commission made under the relevant power in the Charities Act 2011.

Mr Mond appealed the order to the First Tier Tribunal, which held in its decision published in February this year, that Mr Mond's conduct was not sufficient in itself to establish that he was unfit to be a charity trustee, nor was it desirable in the public interest for a disqualification order to be made. Please see our blog from February this year for more on this case.

The case is a reminder of the potential reputational impact on a charity of trustees' social media activity even where it is unconnected to the charity. The Tribunal's comments also provide helpful guidance on what kinds of activity are likely to be considered significant.

Mills & Reeve top tips

The Guidance is clear that whilst the Commission does not expect that every charity will involve trustees in the day-to-day running of the charity’s social media, they must understand their legal responsibilities even where they delegate tasks. Trustees are expected to have a reasonable level of oversight of the charity’s social media and related policies, remaining alive to the risks it can generate, including to the charity’s reputation. 

Remember:

• Have a social media policy (and keep it under review);
• Communicate the policy to trustees, staff and volunteers;
• Training is important across the charity;
• Ensure there are adequate processes in place to monitor compliance with the policy;
• Ensure procedures are in place for when things go wrong; and
• Those with high profiles, such as trustees and CEO’s, should be alive to the risks of their own social media use damaging the reputation of the charities which they are associated and make it clear that ‘all opinions are their own’.

If you have any questions please contact Sarah Williams.