Guild of Students Website Terms of Service & Acceptable Use Policy

Latest Update: 26 August 2026

1. About This Policy

This Terms of Service & Acceptable Use Policy (“Policy”) governs the use of the University of Birmingham Guild of Students (“the Guild”) website and associated digital systems located at www.guildofstudents.com and www.guildtickets.com (“the Website”).

By using the Website, all users agree to comply with this Policy. Users found to not comply with this policy may be subject to disciplinary action or have their accounts closed, as appropriate.

The Website supports a wide range of Guild services and activities. This Policy explains:

  • how users may use the Website and Guild online systems
  • behaviour expected from all users, including students, staff, external members, volunteers, trustees, and members of the public
  • standards expected for all user generated content which includes, but is not limited to, comments, feedback, forms, surveys, events, ideas, activities and complaints
  • acceptable and prohibited activities

The Guild’s goal is to keep our online services safe, respectful, and accessible for everyone.

2. Who May Use the Website

The Website is used by:

  • University of Birmingham students (who are automatically Guild members unless they opt out)
  • External members of the Guild
  • Guild staff, including student staff
  • University of Birmingham staff
  • Volunteers, trustees, and applicants
  • General public

Some features of the Website require a login, and access to some areas depends on your membership type, volunteering position, or staff role.

3. Website Features and Activities Covered by This Policy

This Policy applies to all features and interactions on the Website, including, but not limited to:

  • Website accounts
  • Elections, referenda, and other democratic processes
  • All content and interactions related to Student Groups
  • Purchasing event tickets and Guild products
  • Use of support services (including Guild Advice, Residence Life and Community Engagement)
  • Online forms, surveys, and application processes
  • The Tell Your Rep Platform enabling dialogue between students, Course Representatives, and staff from the Guild and University.

Any use of these services must comply with this Policy.

4. General Acceptable Use Requirements

All users must comply with the requirements listed below.

4.1 Use the Website lawfully

Users must use the website lawfully and must not:

  • violate UK law, Guild policies, or University of Birmingham regulations.
  • infringe copyright, trademarks, privacy, or data protection rules.
  • misuse personal data belonging to others

4.2 Protect the Website and its systems

Users must take reasonable steps to keep the website safe and secure and must not:

  • attempt to gain unauthorised access to accounts, data, or back‑end systems
  • disrupt the Website, servers, or networks
  • introduce malware, viruses, or harmful scripts
  • use automated tools (such as scrapers, bots, or crawlers) unless explicitly permitted

4.3 Submit accurate and appropriate information

All information provided via the Guild website must be, to the best of the user’s knowledge, accurate and relevant. Users must not:

  • provide false, misleading, or impersonated information
  • submit information about another person without clear permission

4.4 Respect privacy and confidentiality

Some Guild services on the Website involve special or personal data. All users must:

  • avoid posting personal details about others in any user generated content on the website such as comments, ideas, and feedback areas.
  • respect the confidentiality of support services, casework, and staff interactions.

5. Standards for All User‑Generated Content

The Website allows users to create content such as comments, Ideas, survey responses, polls, complaints, case submissions, application forms, nominations, and dialogue via the Tell Your Rep Platform. Some users, such as volunteers and staff, may also be able to create events, page descriptions and other types of content.

All such content must be:

  • respectful, constructive, and accurate
  • relevant to the purpose of the service

You must not submit content that is:

  • abusive, harassing, threatening, or intimidating.
  • discriminatory (e.g. based on race, gender, religion, disability, sexuality, age)
  • defamatory or knowingly false
  • hateful or inflammatory
  • sexually explicit, violent, or inappropriate
  • used to attack individuals or groups
  • spam, advertising, promotional material, or irrelevant content
  • confidential information about someone else
  • promoting self‑harm, eating disorders, or other dangerous physical acts
  • illegal in any other way not listed above

The Guild may remove, moderate, or restrict content or accounts that breach these standards.

6. Use of the Tell Your Rep Platform

The Tell Your Rep Platform enables two‑way communication between students and their Student Reps, as well as with Guild staff.

In addition to the general requirements and standards set out in this policy (see section 5), to support positive academic representation, users must:

  • communicate respectfully, courteously, and constructively
  • focus only on academic issues, experiences, and solutions
  • avoid using personal data (such as names, contact details or any other personally identifiable information) when submitting to or responding to feedback
  • avoid personal criticism or targeted remarks against any other individual
  • not harass, insult, or intimidate any student, Student Rep, or staff member
  • not use inappropriate language or tone
  • not attempt to disclose sensitive personal data about others

Student Reps must also adhere to any additional conduct agreements and guidance provided to them as part of their role.

The Guild may monitor, edit or delete feedback items (see section 9) to ensure appropriate use and may intervene or restrict access to the Tell Your Rep Platform if necessary.

7. Use of Online Forms, Surveys, Applications and Polls

Forms, surveys, polls, and applications are used for: feedback, volunteering, funding applications, support requests, surveys, complaints, award nominations, research participation, elections, and as part of other Guild services or processes.

Users must:

  • provide truthful, relevant information
  • only complete forms intended for them
  • avoid submitting harmful, misleading, or offensive responses

The Guild may verify or remove inappropriate or fraudulent submissions.

8. Buying Products, Memberships & Tickets

Users purchasing products, memberships or event tickets must:

  • provide accurate billing information
  • only pay using a payment method they are authorised to use
  • comply with any specific requirements or terms and conditions

Misuse may result in refusal of entry or suspension of access.

9. Moderation, Monitoring and Enforcement

The Guild may monitor user generated content on the Website and is within its right to:

  • remove or edit submissions violating this Policy
  • restrict, suspend, or terminate Website access for users found to violate this Policy
  • refuse or revoke memberships (external or guest) of users found to violate this Policy
  • refuse entry to Guild buildings or events
  • escalate serious issues to the University of Birmingham or law‑enforcement agencies

All decisions are at the Guild’s discretion to ensure a safe online environment.

10. Reporting Concerns or Breaches

If you encounter illegal, harmful or other types of content that do not comply with this policy on the Website, users can report this via the following methods, depending on where the content was posted. Reports about user generated content will be managed in line with relevant Guild policies and users who post this type of content may be subject to disciplinary or other action as appropriate.

10.1 Tell Your Rep Platform

Reports about user-generated content submitted through the Tell Your Rep Platform can be made via an online form on the Website. Once received, the report will be reviewed in line with the Tell Your Rep Content Reporting Process.

10.2 All Other Website Content & User Conduct

Reports about all other user generated content or the conduct of other users on the Website can be made to complaints@guild.bham.ac.uk. Reports will be managed in line with relevant Guild policies and users who post this type of content may be subject to disciplinary action. Refer to the complaints webpage for further information.

11. Updates to This Policy

The Guild may update this Policy as is necessary. Continued use of the Website indicates acceptance of updated terms.

Further information can be found in the Guild of Students Privacy Notice.

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