Terms & conditions

sidebyside.mind.org.uk (the “Site”) is a safe space for you to talk about your feelings and connect with others. The Site is moderated by Mind. If you use the Site, you must comply with these Terms and Conditions. Although you must read these Terms and Conditions in full, we would like to draw your specific attention to the following:

Our Community Values

• You must be 18 or over to use the Site – some Content may not be suitable for younger people.
• You must comply with our Community Guidelines and these Community Values when you use this Site. Please take the time to become familiar with our Community Guidelines so that you can make the best use of the Site.
• This is your space. You have a responsibility to use it safely. Please help us keep this Site a safe and supportive place for everyone.
• The Site is for peer support and connection; it should not be used as a substitute for professional advice. You should consult your doctor, or other relevant professionals, before making any decisions that could affect you or others.

How and why we moderate this community

• The Site is moderated from 8am - 12am 7 days a week including bank holidays, with the exception of 24th - 27th and 31st December, when it is moderated 10am – 10pm.
• Our moderators are here to help facilitate a safe and supportive environment for you to give and receive support relating to your mental health experiences. We will work with members of the community to provide signposting to helpful information.
• Our moderators are not counsellors or crisis workers – we are not able to provide crisis support, but we will prioritise supporting people who need urgent help.
• If you need urgent help, please visit our urgent help pages on the Mind website or call 999 if you feel that you are in immediate danger
• If you are worried about anything or anyone on the Site, please report it directly to the Mind team by using the flag function or sending a direct message. This is the quickest way for us to prioritise the feedback and take necessary action.
• Once you have reported something to us, we will look into this within 24 hours. We will not get back to you unless we need more information, but please be reassured that we prioritise and review every report.
• We will moderate any Content that falls outside the boundaries of our Community Guidelines by removing Content and providing feedback to all involved.

Withdrawing access to the Site

• If we are concerned about someone’s use of the Site, it may become necessary for moderators to access direct messages if we deem it is reasonably necessary to keep you and other members of the community safe.
• Whenever possible, our moderators will work with you to provide feedback and to help you continue using the Site.
• If we are concerned about your use of the Site, we reserve the right to withdraw your access to the Site with immediate effect (with or without providing feedback, depending on the severity of the risk to other community members).
• When your access is withdrawn, you can email the team at sidebysideonline@mind.org.uk to discuss your suspension.

Your anonymity and safety

• The Site is anonymous, and to protect your anonymity, we will remove things that could identify you, such as details of where you live, contact information, social media profiles etc. You may find Mind’s information on keeping yourself safe online helpful to read.
• This is not a dating site. We take any reports about sexual behaviour, or behaviour that puts pressure on others to share details very seriously. If we have any concerns at all, we will remove access immediately.
• We will only share the information you provide to us with other people or organisations in accordance with our Privacy Policy (below).
• Confidentiality and privacy is fundamental to this service. However, there are some exceptional circumstances where we may pass on information. These include:
  • If we suspect a child may be at risk from harm.
  • If a user is at serious risk of harm, either from themselves or others.
  • If a user threatens or abuses our moderators, staff or other service users.
• No advertising or research requests please - the Site is for personal use only.

General

1.1 By using the Site you agree to be legally bound by these Terms and Conditions, which shall take effect immediately on your first use of the Site. If you do not wish to be bound by these Terms and Conditions, then you may not use the Site.

1.2 Mind may change or replace these Terms and Conditions at any time, without prior notice to you, by posting changes online. Please review these Terms and Conditions regularly. Continued use of the Site after changes to the Terms and Conditions are posted means you agree to be legally bound by the updated Terms and Conditions.

1.3 The purpose of this Site is to provide a safe forum for people to share experiences and help each other cope with the challenges of living with mental health problems.

Copyright

2.1 The Content on this Site is owned by Mind (The National Association for Mental Health). No Content from this Site may be copied, used or reproduced without written consent, except where it is used for non-commercial personal use where no consent is required. Please send your written requests to use Content from the Site to sidebysideonline@mind.org.uk

2.2 The Mind and Side by Side, logo and strapline are the intellectual property of Mind.

Disclaimer

3.1 Mind endeavours to make sure the Content it posts to the Site is accurate and up to date but does not accept any liability for error or omission in any Content on the Site (including user Content), or if you or any person or organisation relies on or uses that Content.

3.2 The moderators of this Site cannot pre-check the Content posted and therefore we make no claims as to the accuracy, integrity, timeliness or quality of such Content.

3.3 Mind is not a medical organisation and provides information rather than advice. Mind does not accept liability for any inconvenience, harm, loss or damage arising from the use or inability to use any of the information on this Site.

3.4 This Site facilitates peer support; it should not be used as a substitute for professional advice. You should consult your doctor, or other relevant professional, before making any decisions that could affect you or others.

3.5 Mind takes no responsibility for the Content of external websites and any such links to external websites on the Site should not be taken as an endorsement of any kind.

3.6 Mind shall not be liable for any loss or damage caused or alleged to be caused by your use of the Site or resources appearing on the Site. Any concerns regarding any external link should be reported immediately using the report link.

Data and Privacy

4.1 Your data will be dealt with in accordance with Mind's Privacy Policy, a copy of which can be found here: Privacy Policy

4.2 Mind may email users about activity on the Site such as notifications or password resets. Mind may also email users from time to time about the Site, for example, about improvements, developments or changes to these Terms and Conditions. Mind may also email users about user surveys relating to your experiences of the Site, opportunities, information or activities (of Mind or third parties), but where such contact is e marketing, Mind will only email users where the user has provided his/her consent.

4.3 You can access and update information supplied by you by logging in with your user name and password.

Email

4.4 If you send information to Mind via email, please be aware that Mind cannot guarantee its security during transit. Once received, email information will be stored in accordance with data protection law.

Cookies

For further information about cookies, please see Mind’s Cookie Policy which can be found here Cookie Policy

Security

4.5 We will take reasonable precautions to prevent the loss, misuse or unauthorised alteration of information you give us.

User conduct

5.1 Participation in, and use of, this Site is at your own risk.

5.2 All views and information, whether publicly posted or privately transmitted, by users are individual and not the views, policy or advice of Mind. You understand and acknowledge that Content is the sole responsibility of the person from which such Content originated.

5.3 The naming of health or care providers, legal services and/or their individual staff is not permitted on the Site, Mind aims to remove such references, but has no obligation to do so.

5.4 The use of the Site for gathering information for surveys, articles and research studies, or similar, is not allowed unless prior written consent has been given by Mind.

5.5 This Site is for users over the age of 18 – some Content may be inappropriate for those under the age of 18. Users under the age of 18 will have their accounts removed and if you are under 18, you agree not to use the Site.

5.6 You agree not to participate in mischievous or malicious behaviour that causes damage or may cause damage to Mind or this Site, any other user of the Site, or any of the computer systems on which this Site resides.

5.7 By using this Site you agree to these terms and conditions. If you do not agree to these terms and conditions, you cannot use this Site and Mind reserves the right to prohibit you from using this Site.

5.8 You must keep secret any password you have and not let any other person or organisation use it. You must notify us immediately of any suspected misuse of your password.

5.9 You may not alter the Site in any way or do anything that might or will damage or disrupt the good working order of the Site or software.

5.10 If your access to the Site is terminated or suspended for any reason, you must not access the Site or create a new profile without our prior consent.

5.11 You must not post or upload any Content or use the Site in a way that breaches any law.

5.12 Mind does not guarantee that this Site will be uninterrupted or error free, or that the Site or your use of it will be free of viruses or harmful material. You are responsible for ensuring that your computer is suitable to use this Site.

5.13 You must not share your account on Side by Side with other people, or create an account on the behalf of someone else. If Mind see that multiple people are using one account, they will close the account, and email the associated email address to explain that you can create individual accounts.

5.14. You must only have one account. Multiple accounts are not allowed.

Postings and messages

6.1 Content that is posted to this Site or otherwise included in its direct messaging systems, including your choice of public name or id, must follow these conditions:

• You agree that any information you provide or Content you post is true.
• Content must not be obscene, defamatory or libellous, inflammatory, vulgar, discriminatory, harassing, sexually orientated, racial, political, hateful, threatening, in violation of any laws or good morals and practice, personally abusive or that brings or is likely to bring this Site or Mind into disrepute. You hereby undertake to indemnify and hold harmless Mind against all costs and expenses (including direct, indirect, special and consequential losses) from any such actions committed by you.
• Content containing personal contact details (full names, email addresses/links, phone numbers, fax numbers or postal addresses) is not allowed.

6.2 It is acceptable to post Content containing personal endorsement of products and services that may be of benefit to others.

6.3 Content must not contain commercial advertising. Unsolicited messages for the purpose of advertising a product or service will be removed.

6.4 Content advertising items, whether for sale or donation, are not permitted on this Site. This includes offers of second-hand equipment or books.

6.5 Content must not be excessively repeated intentionally.

6.9 Content must not infringe or violate another party’s rights (including, but not limited to, copyright and/or intellectual property rights, and rights of privacy and publicity).

6.10 Please do not post medical, legal or financial information in an advisory capacity. Mind aims to remove such Content, but has no obligation to do so.

6.11 Please keep any links that you post relevant to the discussion taking place. Mind is not responsible for the Content of external Sites and may remove external links without notice.

6.12 By submitting Content to the Site, you grant Mind a non-exclusive worldwide royalty-free perpetual non-revocable licence to use, distribute, adapt, modify, display, reproduce and transmit such Content in any and all media in the manner in whole or in part without any duty to account to you. You also grant Mind the right to allow/facilitate users of the Site to view and copy such information for personal use. Please be aware that if you decide to delete Content from the Site moderators may still be able to view this Content. If we do use your Content outside of the Site, we will do so anonymously unless you have given us permission to use your name.

6.13 You agree not to post any chain letters, spam, or junk messages to other users or on the Site.

6.14 You agree to respect the privacy and wishes of those users who you have been privately messaging. You must not pass on details to third parties (except Mind) without permission.

6.15 You accept that any post, comments or direct messages you receive from other users shall not be classified as information belonging to you, and therefore cannot be processed under a subject access request.

6.16 By sending or receiving a direct message you consent to that message being viewed by Mind or its representatives, where Mind have been notified of a problem or a breach of these Terms and Conditions.

Moderation

7.1 The Site is moderated from 8am - 12am 7 days a week including bank holidays, with the exception of 24th - 27th and 31st December, when it is moderated 10am - 10pm. We will read every report within 24 hours.

7.2 Please use the report link for inappropriate Content or behaviour.

7.3 Mind has the right, but not the obligation, to remove, edit, move or close any Content, posts, message or group of messages for any reason at any time.

7.4 Mind has the right to modify or delete any or all information relating to a user, including closure of that user’s account, without prior notice or reason at any time.

7.5. A request can be made to Mind to delete a user's account where the user is deceased. Mind will only consider this request where the requestor is able to provide evidence to Mind’s reasonable satisfaction that the request has been legitimately made by a person appropriately authorised to make it.

7.6 If moderators become aware that a user has a conviction or caution relating to sexual offences the user will be removed from the Site and the account closed.

7.7 Any removal or banning of a user from anywhere within the Site is binding and the decision is final. No correspondence will be entered into, nor will Mind and/or its moderators be obliged to provide an explanation of their decision.

7.8 Posts discussing moderators’ decisions, including suspensions or complaints will be removed. Users who wish to discuss any decision made by a moderator should contact the moderating team sidebysideonline@mind.org.uk

7.9 Mind is not obliged to enter into any correspondence with those who wish to challenge moderation decisions made in relation to Content on this Site or its removal. In cases of dispute, please follow Mind’s complaints procedure by emailing sidebysideonline@mind.org.uk. The decision of Mind shall be final.

7.10 Where a breach of these Terms and Conditions occurs Mind reserves the right to take such action as it sees fit. If your use of this Site, uploading of Content or breach of these Terms and Conditions creates losses for Mind, you will compensate Mind for all its losses (including direct and indirect losses, consequential and special damages, all costs and other damages in accordance with 6.1 above).

Other General

8.1 We may assign, transfer, novate or subcontract any or all of our rights and obligations under these Terms and Conditions at any time.

8.2 If any term of these Terms and Conditions is illegal, invalid, or unenforceable for any reason, the remaining terms shall continue to be valid.

8.3 These Terms and Conditions and your use of this Site are governed by English law and you are subject to the non-exclusive jurisdiction of the English courts.

8.4 Neither you nor Mind will be held liable for any failure to perform any obligation to the other due to causes beyond either our or your reasonable control.

8.5 Failure or delay by either party to enforce an obligation or exercise a right under these Terms and Conditions shall not be a waiver of that obligation/right.

8.6 These Terms and Conditions do not confer any rights on any person or party (other than you and/or Mind) under the Contracts (Rights of Third Parties) Act 1999.

Exclusion of Liability

9.1 Mind hereby excludes all and any losses, liabilities, claims, damages, expenses or costs (whether as a consequence of its negligence or otherwise) arising in connection with:

• your use or inability to use the Site;
• any unauthorised access to or alterations of information provided by you;
• your use of any third party Sites (including without limitation those that may be connected by hyperlink to this Site);
• any arrangements entered into with any third party in connection with any information provided by or in connection with this Site;
• the inaccuracy, incompleteness or tardiness of any information supplied through the service other than, in each case, any liability in respect of death or personal injury.

9.2 If Mind is liable to you for any reason, our liability will be limited to £200.

9.3 Nothing in these Terms and Conditions excludes any liability to you we may have for death or personal injury arising from our negligence, for which no limitation applies.

Notice and Contact

10.1 All contact or notices to be given in relation to these Terms and Conditions or your use of this Site shall be given:

• to us via email to sidebysideonline@mind.org.uk; or
• to you, via these Terms and Conditions or the email address you provide when signing up to the Site (or later update).

10.2 Notice will be deemed received when an email is received in full.

Definitions

11.1 ‘this Site’ and ‘the Site’ refers to all Internet pages in the sidebyside.mind.org.uk domain.

11.2 ‘Mind’ includes the registered charity Mind (details given below) any person or organisation engaged by Mind (including as its agent/contractor) in any part of the design, development, operation, marketing, promotion or other similar aspects of this Site.

11.3 ‘user', ‘you’ and ‘community member’ refer to any person viewing or interacting with this Site.

11.4 ‘Content’ refers to any text, post, message, photograph or other image presented on this Site to one or more users by either Mind or users, including direct messages.

11.5 ‘moderator’ refers to any person from Mind or our external moderation agency who are contracted to moderate the Site overnight and at weekends.

11.6 ‘Terms and Conditions’ refers to these Terms and Conditions, including the community guidelines and Privacy Policy, as updated or amended from time to time.

If you have any comments, please email sidebysideonline@mind.org.uk

Mind (The National Association For Mental Health) is a company limited by guarantee registered in England and Wales under number 424348 and registered charity number 219830.

Last updated: 10 November 2023