Terms of use

Ballina Shire Council (BSC) owns and operates several websites, hereafter collectively referred to as 'Council websites'.  By using Council websites, you agree to comply with the Terms of Use listed on this page and elsewhere within the Council websites.  You also agree to comply with section 4 of the Terms of Use (“User Participation”) when you contribute to third party social media platforms where BSC or a business unit owned by BSC has a branded presence (for example, when you post content to a BSC related Facebook page or Twitter account).  BSC may amend these Terms of Use from time to time without prior notice.

1. Copyright

1. Unless indicated otherwise, all information, artwork, graphics, text, copy, data, software, advertisements and other material included in the Council Websites ("Material") is owned by BSC or BSC has permission to use this material. All Material is protected in Australia by the Copyright Act 1968 and by applicable legislation in other jurisdictions. All rights not expressly granted by these Conditions of Use are reserved.
2. Material may not be reproduced, distributed, downloaded, uploaded, modified, adapted or communicated to the public.

2. Logos

1. You must not use any BSC Logo without the prior written permission of BSC. This is a registered trademark with Intellectual Property Australia (IP Australia).
2. Other product, service and company names and logos displayed on Council Websites may be trademarks of third parties and may only be used with the permission of the relevant third party.

3. Third party sites

1. Council websites contain links to other third party websites of other agencies associated with the functions of BSC. The content of these websites is not created or maintained by BSC, and as such BSC takes no responsibility for the consequences of viewing or using such content. It is the responsibility of the Internet user to make their own decisions about the accuracy, currency, reliability or correctness of information they find on the Internet.

4. User Participation

1. Council websites may, at times contain opportunities for you to make contributions, including blogs and forums.  BSC’s participation in third party social media platforms may also enable you to make contributions (for example, to a BSC Facebook page).
2. All users should treat each other with tolerance, courtesy and respect.
3. BSC does not endorse the opinions contained in the forums/blogs. The majority of these contributions are created by members of the public and reflect the opinions of those who choose to make contributions.
4. By submitting a contribution, you grant to BSC a perpetual, royalty free, non-exclusive, unrestricted licence to use, copy, communicate, redistribute or adapt the contribution.
5. In order for BSC to use your contribution (whether it is text, a photograph, video, audio or otherwise), you confirm and warrant that it is your own original work, that it is not in breach of any law (whether the laws of Australia or another jurisdiction), that you have the right to make the contribution and that you have the consent of anyone who is identifiable in your contribution.
6. All contributions are published at BSC’s sole discretion. Your contribution may be edited or removed or not published if BSC considers it to be:
   (a) false, misleading or in breach of any law, whether the laws of Australia or another jurisdiction, including defamation, contempt of court, privacy, discrimination, harassment, and racial vilification
   (b) an infringement of intellectual property rights (including in relation to copyright and trademarks), whether of BSC or a third person;
   (c) expressing prejudice against any person or group on the basis of their race, ethnicity, nationality, sex, age, sexual preference, religion, disability, mental illness, or marital, parental or occupational status;
   (d) abusive, offensive, insulting, hateful, violent, threatening, harassing, vulgar, sexually explicit, obscene or deliberately provocative towards other users;
   (e) inappropriate, off-topic, repetitive of other contributions, vexatious or in breach of any ‘house rules’ posted on the relevant site;
   (f) an intrusion of privacy of any person, including the inappropriate provision of personal information (such as an email address, home address or phone number);
   (g) an advertisement or promotion, including inappropriate or gratuitous references to a company or product, service, person, organisation or cause which unduly promotes that company or product, service, person, organisation or cause; or
   a solicitation for donations.
   Further action may also be taken by BSC for serious or systematic breaches of these Terms of Use, including removing or banning you from the relevant site or suspending contributions on a website.
7. You must not use your contributions to impersonate any person, group or entity or misrepresent your affiliation with any person, group or entity.
8. You agree not to disrupt, modify or interfere with Council Websites or its associated software, hardware and/or servers in any way, and you agree not to impede or interfere with others' use of Council Websites. You agree that you will not post any content that contains viruses, corrupted files, or any other similar software or programs that may adversely affect the operation of Council Websites, or any feature of Council Websites.  You further agree not to alter or tamper with any information or materials on, or associated with, Council Websites.
9. You may be held legally responsible for the material you submit to Council Websites or to a social media platform, such as Facebook. BSC reserves the right to cooperate fully with any law enforcement authority in any jurisdiction regarding material which may violate any applicable law, including a request to disclose your identity or other information.  BSC reserves the right to inform your Internet Service Provider (“ISP”) if you breach any of the Terms of Use and you consent to the disclosure of your personal information to the ISP.
10. Children’s contributions should be supervised by an adult.
11. Contributions do not constitute formal Council Submissions.

5. Registration 

1. To make use of enhanced functionality, or to make contributions, you may be required to register on Council Websites.
2. In order to register, you may be required to choose a password, a user name, and/or other registration information (collectively, “Registration Information”). You agree that all Registration Information provided by you will be accurate and up-to-date. If any of your Registration Information changes, you must update it by using the appropriate update mechanism on Council Websites.
3. Certain user names and/or images associated with your BSC profile may be unacceptable to BSC because they are offensive, misleading, use company or organisation names, names promoting political or religious issues or breach copyright, trademark or other laws.  BSC may refuse any user name or user image at its sole discretion.
4. BSC reserves the right to refuse to register any individual or group where BSC takes the view that the contributions of that individual or group are likely to be vexatious, deliberately provocative of other users of Council Websites in breach of discrimination, vilification or other laws or otherwise inappropriate for inclusion on Council Websites.  BSC may refuse to register any individual or group at its sole discretion.   Similarly, BSC reserves the right to suspend or terminate the registration of any individual or group at its sole discretion.
5. You will be responsible for maintaining the confidentiality of your Registration Information. You may not authorise others to use your Registration Information.
6. You are responsible for all usage and activity on your account including, but not limited to, use of the account by any person who uses your Registration Information, with or without authorisation, or who has access to any computer on which your account resides or is accessible.
7. If you have reason to believe that your account is no longer secure (for example, in the event of unauthorised use), you must promptly change the affected Registration Information by using the update mechanism on Council Websites and notify BSC.
8. Any personal information supplied to BSC in the registration process will be treated in accordance with BSC’s Privacy policy. BSC may show your registered name and location next to any comments made by you. BSC advises that you should be cautious about revealing any other personal information about yourself when making contributions.
9. You acknowledge that it may be possible for your contributions to be read and accessed by users of Council Websites who are not registered users.

6. Disclaimer

1. The content of Council Websites was believed to be accurate at the time of publishing. Some of this content may be out of date or inaccurate. BSC takes no responsibility for any decisions made or action taken on the basis of this information.
2. BSC does not warrant that Council Websites will be provided on an uninterrupted basis, that your access to Council Websites will be error-free or that the Material will be free of any viruses or defects that may damage your computer. You acknowledge that you must take your own precautions as to virus checking and security of your computer and any network of which it forms part.
3. BSC will not be liable for any losses, claims or damages whatsoever including special, indirect or consequential damages, loss of revenue or loss of data as a result of the use of Council Websites.

7. Termination or suspension of access to this website

1. BSC has the right to terminate and/or suspend your ability to access Council Websites (or any part of it), for any or no reason, or may prevent your use of Council Websites with or without notice to you.  You agree that you do not have any rights in Council Websites and that BSC will have no liability to you if Council Websites are discontinued or your ability to access same is terminated.