• How do I set up an account?  
• How should I select my username?  
• How should I select my profile picture?  

• I would like to change my username and profile picture, how do I do this? 
• I’ve forgotten my password, what can I do?  
• I’m not receiving email notifications. What should I do?  
• How do I start a thread?  
• How do I reply to a thread?  

• I’d like to recommend a service I’ve used, is this allowed? 
• Can I block another user?  
• What happens if I report another user? 
• How do I send a personal message?  
• Should I arrange to meet another user or link in with them on social media? 

• How can I delete a thread or reply?  
• What happens if someone posts something worrying?  
• Who are the moderators?  
• How do I leave the online community?  
• How can I provide feedback about the online community?  

• I have a question about the online community, who can I contact?  

How do I set up an account? 

• All you need to set up an account is an email address 
• To set up an Online Community account, please visit https://www.autism.org.uk/what-we-do/community and click on ‘join the discussions’  
• Click ‘join now’ 
• On the next page, click ‘Sign up now’ and enter your details.  

How should I select my username? 

• Your username is a way for you to identify yourself to other community users. You can select almost any name but there are a few rules we ask you to follow. 
• To keep our online community members safe, we do not allow any personal or identifying details so please do not use your full name or any other information that could identify you. 
• Our moderators use the word ‘Mod’ in their usernames so please don’t use this as it could be confusing.  
• Usernames should not include any obscene or hateful language or language that breaks our online community rules. 

• If your username is not appropriate, a member of our moderation team may contact you to request it is amended or it may be amended without warning.   

How should I select my profile picture? 

• Your profile picture is a way for you to identify yourself to other community users. You can select almost any picture but there are a few rules we ask you to follow. 
• To keep our online community members safe, we do not allow any personal or identifying details so please do not use a picture of yourself or any other image that could identify you. 

• Our moderators have the National Autistic Society Logo on their profiles so they can be easily identified, please don’t use this. 
• If you are not sure what to use, you can leave your picture blank or go to select to use one of our avatar options. 

I would like to change my username and profile picture, how do I do this? 

• You can change your username or profile picture at any time. Log in to your account and click your name in the top right hand corner, this brings up 3 options, the first is profile. Click on this and then on the next page, you will be able to change your username or profile picture. 

• Remember to save your changes.  

I’ve forgotten my password, what can I do? 

• When you sign in to the online community, you can click on the ‘forgot password’ option and you will be sent an email to reset it. 

I’m not receiving email notifications. What should I do? 

• To receive email notifications for new comments in a thread and for private messages, you need to allow these options in your settings.  
• Log in to your account and click your name in the top right-hand corner, this brings up 3 options, click on settings. 
• The next page shows you all the different settings, click on the notifications tab and make sure all the boxes are clicked to receive the notifications you would like. 
• Remember to click ‘save’ when you are finished. 

How do I start a thread? 

• To start a thread, log in to your account, go to the forum you would like to post in and click on ‘start a discussion’. 
• Add your thread title and type in your post. 
• Remember to click ‘post’ when you are finished. 

How do I reply to a thread? 

• You can reply to a thread from the list of recent posts on the home page or in one of our 6 forums. 
• To reply, type in your response in the text box and click on the ‘reply’ button underneath to create the reply. 

I’d like to recommend a service or ask for research participants, is this allowed? 

• Users are welcome to recommend useful services or provide helpful links for other community users. However, accounts should not be created primarily to advertise or sell products and services. Accounts adding SPAM links to new or old posts will be banned or deleted. 
• Users should only create research posts or posts requesting research participants if permission has been given for this purpose. Requests for research study subjects or surveys should be sent to research@nas.org.uk . 

Can I block another user? 

• Blocking other users is not an option on the online community. We encourage all our users to try and resolve any disagreements themselves where possible. 

• If another user is being abusive, please do report them by clicking the ‘more’ option below the comment. This will flag the comment for our moderation team. 
• Alternatively, if you’d like to report another user, please contact communitymanager@nas.org.uk with a link to the comment or a screenshot of the private message. 

What happens if I report another user? 

• The reported post or comment will be placed in a moderation queue to be checked by our moderation team. They may contact you to find out why you have reported the post or comment, please respond within 2 working days or your report may be deleted.  
• If the user reported is found to be breaking online community rules, their post or comment may be edited or removed and we may contact the user in some cases. 

• Our moderation team are unable to discuss details of any action taken which relates to another user. 

How do I send a personal message? 

• To send a personal message to another user, you can hover over their user name and click ‘send personal message, or click on their profile and on their profile page click ‘connect’ on the top right hand side. 
• If you receive messages that break our online community rules, please contact communitymanager@nas.org.uk for advice. 

Should I arrange to meet another user or link in with them on social media? 

• Sometimes online community members become friends and may like to meet one another in person or have contact with them on a different social media platform. 
• If you’d like to meet or keep in touch with another user, please take care and make others are aware for your own protection. 
• If another user is pushing you in to meeting or communicating and you are uncomfortable about this, please contact our moderation team at communitymanager@nas.or.uk for assistance. 

How can I delete a thread or reply? 

• If you have created a thread and there are no replies, you can click ‘more’ underneath your comment and then ‘delete’ 
• If you are replying to another user or other users have replied to your post you need to contact communitymanager@nas.org.uk with the link and details of what you’d like deleted.  
• Alternatively, you can ‘edit’ your post without deleting at any time.  

What happens if someone posts something worrying? 

• If we have concerns about a member of our online community due to a post they have created or comments they make, our moderation team will post a reply to the thread or comment. In some cases we may contact the user directly.  

• If you have concerns about a member of our online community, please report them by clicking the ‘report abuse’ option on their comment or contact commmunitymanager@nas.org.uk including a link to their comment. Please note, our online community is not moderated 24/7 and it may take a while for us to respond to any concerns. 
• We have a dedicated page here with resources to help members of our community who may need urgent help. 
• If a moderator has not responded to a specific post, it does not necessarily mean that they are not aware of the situation or have not taken action. There can be a number of reasons for this. For instance, in certain circumstances, the moderation team may need to contact a member directly and follow our safeguarding policy and process. If this happens, it will not always be publicly posted on the community thread as we need to protect the member's privacy. 

Who are the moderators? 

• Our moderation team is made up of staff and volunteer moderators. 

• You can recognise one of our moderation team as they have the NAS logo and the word ‘Mod’ in their username. 
• Please remember that the moderators are real people, most of whom are volunteers. Their role is to make sure users follow the  online community rules and to make sure the environment is supportive and welcoming.  

How do I leave the online community? 

• If you would like to leave the online community, please contact communitymanager@nas.org.uk including the email address your account is registered to. 
• Our team may need to get back to you to confirm further details, please check your inbox. 

How can I provide feedback about the online community? 

• If you have any comments or complaints about the online community, please contact communitymanager@nas.org.uk with details. One of our team will respond within 10 working days. 

I have a question about the online community, who can I contact? 

• If you have a question about the online community, please contact communitymanager@nas.org.uk. We will respond within 10 working days.  
• Our online community members are very knowledgeable and may be able to answer your question themselves, please do consider asking the community if appropriate.