Policy

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OWNERSHIP & ORGANISATIONAL STRUCTURE

Epsom and Ewell Times (EET) is an independently owned local media not-for-profit company (limited by guarantee) that inspires and enables people to discover, illuminate and debate what is happening in the local borough.  

EET will have a digital and physical presence comprising websites, mobile, social media and a periodic print addition 

EET curates the best news, stories and features focused on the local Borough and County for a highly engaged and active local audience. Its content is created, updated and fact-checked by “citizen” journalists and will be distributed freely online and in print.

EET will monetise via a mix of digital and print advertising, subscription, e-commerce and live events.

EET operates as a company limited by guarantee.

Find out more about EET leadership team https://epsomandewelltimes.com/the-team and the inspiration behind its creation https://epsomandewelltimes.com/about

ETHICS POLICY

EET maintains a high ethical standard. 

If you see anything on our site that you think is incorrect or wrong, let us know at admin@epsomandewelltimes.com 

Feedback from our readers is welcome and appreciated. We will immediately remove anything which is factually inaccurate, offensive or unethical. Any substantive corrections will be clearly flagged. However, independent journalism is essential to our mission: We will not alter opinions on request.

EET  does not endorse any particular political party, candidate or agenda. It primarily documents life in the borough in all its diversity and richness. EET  does not recommend or endorse illegal, cruel, hateful or exploitative activities. It has a no-tolerance for any organisation that uses exploitative tactics toward children, animals, marginalised communities. 

EDITORIAL MISSION

EET’s mission is to highlight and investigate what is happening in the Borough and County by  publishing news,  recommendations, reviews and features. Our recommendations are local and expert. Its content is positive, actionable, honest and fair.

DIVERSITY

EET strives for a diversity of voices and experiences both in what and who we cover, and who we hire.

TASTE 

EET respects taste and decency, whilst understanding that society’s concepts of taste and decency are constantly changing. But we shall avoid prurience. We shall avoid profanities and obscenities unless their use is so essential to a story of significance that its meaning is lost without them. In no case shall obscenities be used without the approval of the editor. 

TRANSPARENCY & INTEGRITY

EET primarily creates independent editorial content. We are always transparent if our content is anything other than our own expert opinion (see Paid Content, below).

OPPOSITION TO EDITORIAL CORRUPTION

We do not accept payment or receive gifts in exchange for our editorial content. Our contributors do attend press events and occasionally arrange for complimentary tickets and experiences with PR representatives depending on the local and industry conventions. However we always ensure our coverage of these experiences is independent, that complimentary access to venues or events never influences our reviews, and that no conflict of interest occurs. If you think a conflict of interest has occurred, please email admin@epsomandewelltimes.com  and we will investigate promptly.

ATTRIBUTION & SOURCES

The content on our site comes from our contributors, and is attributed as such in our bylines. If there is content on our site that comes from another outside source, we will always attribute that information to whatever publisher or source it comes from.

COMMERCIAL CONTENT

EET’s editorial recommendations are independent. Its content  is never influenced by advertisers; commercial content is clearly labelled. Commercial content is funded by advertisers. It is compliant with local and platform-specific regulations, and with our own ethical policy. Our funded content falls into two categories:

Sponsored content:

This is independent editorial content which a sponsor has paid to be associated with, often via their logo being integrated within the piece. It is controlled editorially and the client does not have sign-off on it.

Advertising:

This is space on our digital or print platforms which is sold to a client. The client uses this space to convey their own message. This is controlled by our sales team and EET has no input into it – the only instances where we’d intervene is if we think it’s inappropriate for our readers. Ads are not labelled but they are easy to recognise – they don’t look like EET content.

PLAGIARISM

At EET we define plagiarism as any content not created originally by our editors or contributors specifically for EET use. We have a no-tolerance policy for plagiarised content, and always attribute as necessary (see Attribution & Sources, above).

SYNDICATION & LICENSING

If you wish to syndicate or reproduce EET content (including photography, videography, text or archived magazines) then contact us at admin@epsomandewelltimes.com 

FACTUAL ACCURACY

EET editorial content is fact-checked to make sure that all the information is up-to-date and correct; all of our content has a time-stamp to indicate the last time each piece of content was checked. 

HOW TO MAKE A COMPLAINT

We can look into complaints about items we have published which are in our control. We adhere to the Standards Code adopted by IMPRESS and can only deal with complaints which relate to an alleged breach of the standards set out in this Code. http://www.impress.press/standards/.

We can only deal with your complaint if you are:

personally and directly affected by an alleged breach of the Code

a representative group affected by an alleged breach of the Code, where there is public interest in your complaint

a third party seeking to ensure accuracy of published information

We are applying to be regulated by IMPRESS, but initial complaints must be made to us Epsom and Ewell Times in writing at the following address:

EMAIL: admin@epsomandewelltimes.com

Address: Epsom and Ewell Times

Upper Chambers 7 Waterloo Road Epsom Surrey  KT19 8AY

We will acknowledge your complaint by e-mail or in writing within 7 calendar days and will normally respond to your complaint with a final decision letter within 21 calendar days. If we uphold your complaint, we will tell you the remedial actions we have taken.

If you are not satisfied with the final response to your complaint, or if you do not hear from us within 21 calendar days of submitting your complaint, then you can refer your complaint to our (application pending) Independent regulator IMPRESS at the following address:    complaints@impressreg.org.uk

Epsom and Ewell Times Ltd

Regd Office: Upper Chambers, 7 Waterloo Road, Epsom, KT19 8AY

Co.Reg. 13613855

www.epsomandewelltimes.com

© 2021-2022. No content may be copied without the permission of Epsom and Ewell Times Ltd.