Terms of Use

About Sefton Dialogue

Sefton Dialogue is Sefton Council's online platform for consultation and engagement.  

You can use Sefton Dialogue to:

• have your say about local services and issues
• take part in surveys and consultations
• share your views, ideas and experiences
• comment on proposals
• help us understand what matters to people who live, work, study or use services in Sefton

By using Sefton Dialogue, you agree to follow these Terms of Use.

2. Taking part

We want Sefton Dialogue to be a welcoming and respectful place where everyone can take part.

When using Sefton Dialogue, please:

• be respectful of other people and their views
• stay on the subject being discussed
• use appropriate language
• share your own views and experiences
• respect other people's privacy
• remember that other people may have different views and experiences

You do not have to agree with other people, but please disagree respectfully.

3. What you should not post

Please do not post or share anything that:

• is abusive, threatening, discriminatory or deliberately offensive
• bullies, harasses or targets another person
• share someone else's personal information without their permission
• include private or personal information
• is deliberately false or misleading
• is not related to the consultation or discussion
• is spam, advertising or repeated promotional material
• breaks the law
• uses someone else's work without permission
• encourages illegal or harmful activity

Please think carefully before sharing information about your own personal circumstances in an open comment.

4. How we moderate Sefton Dialogue

Sefton Council may check and moderate content posted on Sefton Dialogue.

If something does not follow these Terms of Use, we may:

• remove, hide or not publish it
• contact you about what you have posted
• ask you to change or remove it
• limit or suspend your access to parts of Sefton Dialogue
• close your account if there are serious or repeated problems.

We will not remove a comment simply because it is critical of Sefton Council or its services.

We welcome constructive criticism and different points of view.

5. Safeguarding and staying safe

Sometimes people may share information that makes us concerned about their safety or someone else's safety.

If we are concerned that someone may be at risk of harm, we may need to share relevant information with the appropriate service or organisation.

Do not use Sefton Dialogue to report an emergency or ask for urgent help.

If someone is in immediate danger, call 999.

Where appropriate, we will provide information about how to report safeguarding concerns alongside a consultation.

6. Your personal information

Some consultations may ask you to provide information about yourself.

We will explain in the privacy notice:

• what information we are asking for
• why we need it
• how we will use it
• who we may share it with
• how long we will keep it

Please read the privacy information provided with each consultation before taking part.

Do not include names, addresses, phone numbers, email addresses or other personal information in open comments unless we specifically ask you to.

7. How we use your feedback

We use your feedback to understand people's views, experiences and priorities.

Your feedback may be:

• looked at alongside other people's responses
• included in reports or consultation findings
• used to help make decisions or plan services
• shared with decision makers or relevant organisations

If we publish comments or quotes, we will take appropriate steps to protect your personal information.

Taking part does not mean that Sefton Council will make the decision or change you have asked for. We must consider your feedback alongside other information, such as evidence, available resources, legal requirements and the needs of different communities.

Where possible, we will tell you what we heard and what happened as a result.

8. Photos, documents and other people's work

Only upload or share something if you have the right to use it.

This includes photographs, documents and other materials.

Make sure you have permission to share them and that you are not sharing someone else's personal information without their permission.

You are responsible for the content you submit.

9. Accessibility and getting help

We want as many people as possible to be able to take part.

If you have difficulty using Sefton Dialogue or need information in a different format, please contact us.

For example, you may need:

• Easy Read
• large print
• information in another language
• another accessible format.

Contact: yourseftonyoursay@sefton.gov.uk

10. Using your contributions

When you send us a response, you give Sefton Council permission to use it as part of that consultation or engagement activity.

For example, we may use anonymous comments or extracts in reports, presentations or information about the results of the consultation.

We will handle your personal information in line with the relevant privacy information.

11. Availability of Sefton Dialogue

We aim to keep Sefton Dialogue available and working properly, but there may be times when it is not available.

For example, we may need to:

• carry out maintenance
• make changes to the platform
• temporarily restrict access
• close or archive consultations.

Where possible, we will let people know about important changes or interruptions.

12. Changes to these Terms of Use

We may update these Terms of Use when needed.

The latest version will always be available on Sefton Dialogue.

Last updated: October 2026