Social Media Guidelines

The Town of Halton Hills uses social media to share information, highlight community initiatives and engage with residents. These platforms are intended to provide timely, relevant updates and create opportunities for respectful community interaction.

This page outlines expectations for participation on the Town’s social media channels.

Purpose of Town Social Media

The Town’s social media channels are used to:

Share news, updates and service information
Promote programs, events and initiatives
Provide emergency or time‑sensitive information
Engage with the community in a meaningful way

Social media is one way the Town connects with residents, alongside the website and other communication channels.

Community Participation

The Town encourages open and respectful conversation on its social media platforms.

When participating, users are expected to:

Be respectful and considerate of others
Stay on topic and relevant to the post
Share comments in a constructive and appropriate manner

Healthy discussion is welcome, and diverse perspectives help strengthen community dialogue.

Moderation Guidelines

To maintain a safe and respectful environment, the Town may monitor and moderate activity on its social media channels.

Content may be removed if it includes:

Offensive, abusive or discriminatory language
Personal attacks, harassment or threats
Spam, advertising or repetitive content
Misinformation or misleading content
Content that violates applicable laws or privacy requirements

Users who repeatedly violate these guidelines may be restricted from participating.

Privacy & Personal Information

To protect privacy and ensure appropriate use:

Do not share personal or sensitive information in comments or messages
The Town does not request confidential information through social media
Submissions containing personal information may be removed

For service requests or account‑specific inquiries, contact the Town directly.

Service Requests & Urgent Issues

Social media is not monitored at all times and should not be used to report urgent issues.

For:

Service requests
Complaints or concerns
Emergencies

Please use the appropriate channels:

Report an Issue

For emergencies, always call 911.

Accuracy & Information Sharing

The Town strives to provide accurate and up‑to‑date information.

However:

Information may change over time
Social media posts should not be considered official records
The Town is not responsible for content shared by third parties

Following, Sharing & External Links

The Town may follow, share or link to other accounts or content for informational purposes.

This does not imply endorsement of:

External organizations
Products or services
Views or opinions expressed by others

The Town of Halton Hills welcomes open and engaging dialogue on our social media platforms. We encourage public feedback and consider it essential in strengthening democracy and communication in the Town of Halton Hills, as outlined in our Public Engagement Charter. We ask that if you contribute to our platforms, please follow these guidelines to ensure these spaces remain a place for constructive and respectful conversation.

By interacting with the Town of Halton Hills social media accounts, you agree to:

Be respectful towards all users of the site,
Abide by the Terms of Use for the company hosting the site,
Not impersonate or falsely claim to represent a person or an organization.

Comments and private messages including any of the following are considered a violation of our Social Media Guidelines and may be hidden, deleted or not responded to:

Profanity, defamatory, libelous, offensive, abusive, discriminatory, harassing or demeaning content including images, videos and links;
Threatening or condoning violent or illegal behaviour or encouraging others to do so;
Personal information such as names of individuals, email addresses, phone numbers, personal photos or videos;
Confidential, sensitive or non-public information;
Violate copyright or intellectual property;
Are commercial in nature with intent to sell products/services or recruit followers;
Contain information that is false, inaccurate or misleading;
Are repetitive or disruptive to the community (SPAM) or violate Facebook's Terms and Policies; and
Commenting or posting content that is unrelated to the page or post.

Please note:
Social media profiles are not monitored 24/7; regular business hours apply. Request a service or report an issue online.