NATFHE branch websites

Many NATFHE branches have their own websites (you can find a full listing of these in this site's links section). If your branch has a website, but it isn't listed, please email us the details.

The NATFHE branch website editor is now available to allow branches to set up their own website. NATFHE has provided the web space, with its own domain name - www.natfhebranches.org.uk, so your branch site will be completely independent from your college network.

Please note that this editor is designed to enable non-technical people to create a very basic site and enable all branches/coordinating committees to have a web presence.

The website editor provides a standard layout with five pages - the home page, information, advice, news and links. It allows you to add your own content whenever you please with no technical knowledge on web building required. To see a sample branch website go to www.natfhebranches.org.uk/anytown.

To avoid confusion we have allocated one website to each institution/employer. If you have more than one branch at your university or college, the branches will have to collaborate to produce the website. Co-ordinating committees, where they exist, are the logical group to administer the joint site.

I would like to use the NATFHE branch website editor. What do I do now?

First read all the information on this page carefully. You may wish to download it as a pdf file or Word document. Then you need to contact Babs Fotherby or Andrew Fall to let us know you wish to use the editor. If you are not the Branch Secretary or Branch Chair you will need to get the Branch Secretary to give us their authorisation for you to create a NATFHE branch site. You will then be given the password you will need to access the editor. You will also need to know your branch code. Next download the branch website editor instructions which are available as a pdf file or as a Word document. These should give you all the information you need to begin creating your branch website, but if you have any difficulties contact Babs Fotherby or Andrew Fall for help.

Appoint a ‘gatekeeper’

Although you may wish to have different people responsible for updating different sections on the site you need to designate one person who has overall responsibility for the site as a whole and acts as a ‘gatekeeper’. We need to know who that person is and be able to contact them, preferably by email, so we can keep them up to date on any changes to the system.

Do I need any special software?

No. All you need is internet access and a web browser (e.g. Internet Explorer or Netscape). All information on the site is added or amended through your browser.

What sort of information should I put on the site?

We anticipate the site will be mainly about the day-to-day business of your branch - notices of meetings, advice on procedures if a member has a problem, information on the progress of campaigns, negotiations, agreements reached etc. Examples are given on the sample site at www.natfhebranches.org.uk/anytown. You must remember however that the site is a public site. Although the majority of people who will access the site will be NATFHE members, there is no member login so anyone who finds the site can view all of the information on it. Do not put up anything of a sensitive nature or anything you are not happy for any member of the public or your college administration to read.

Who is responsible for the accuracy and legality the information on the site?

NATFHE is; a branch's officers, including the person who runs and 'gatekeeps' the site, are, in law, NATFHE's agents, and so the union nationally can be liable if anything libellous or obscene appears on the branch website. An individual branch officer may also be personally liable if they are the author or publisher.

This means that when you publish to your site, you must ensure that reports of opinions and views held by the branch and/or its officers are fair and reasonable, are supported by the facts, and avoid excessive language, particularly if these refer to named individuals.

You must also apply the same principles when reporting other people's opinions; clearly attribute the views to the other person or persons, but remember that a reported libel is as actionable as the original libel itself.

These simple principles are usually sufficient to deal with most circumstances that a branch is likely to encounter. If you are in any doubt, don't publish, and get advice from head office.

What will the web address (URL) of my site be?

The address for your site will be www.natfhebranches.org.uk/(your college/university name), eg www.natfhebranches.org.uk/Bedford_Coll.

As there can be no gaps in the address, spaces have been substituted with the underscore ie _ character, and words such as college have been abbreviated to coll. In some cases this has produced a rather unwieldy name eg berkshire_coll_of_art_&_design. If you are not happy with your web address let us know what you would like it to be changed to - remembering that you can have no gaps, and that it must differentiate between similarly named colleges such as Calderdale ACE and Calderdale College.

You will be given your URL with your password.

The name of the branch/institution appears automatically on each page of the site - if the name on your branch site is incorrect, let us know on [email protected].

Do I always have to use the same computer to update the site?

No - you can update the site from any computer with internet access. Just go to www.natfhebranches.org.uk/admin as usual and type in your user name and password. If using a computer in a public space such as resource centre, library or internet café be sure to log out or close down the browser when you finish so that no-one else can access and edit your site.

Can I change the password?

You cannot change it directly but if you do need to change it contact Babs Fotherby or Andrew Fall at head office and we will change it for you. Do not give the password to anyone you do not have complete confidence in or to anyone who does not absolutely need to have it. If you lose confidence in someone who already has the password contact us immediately and we will change it.

Can more than one person edit the site?

Yes. Anyone who has the username and password can edit the site. Do however, make sure that only trustworthy people are given access to the password and that they do not pass it on to unauthorised people.

Can I upload pictures or documents?

No, it is not possible to upload pictures or documents to the site. To make it easy to use it has been kept simple but therefore limited.

If you have personal or college web space you are able to use you could always upload the document to that site then put a link to it from the branch site. If you know some html code you could do the same for pictures, by giving the URL of the image within the <image> tag. This will of course load more slowly than if the image was located in the same place as the web page.

Can I add more pages to the site?

No - the site is limited to the five main pages and four information sub-pages that already exist. However, adding an indexed items at the bottom of the page which links to additional information you are in effect adding a new page. This should give you enough capacity and flexibility to add as much information as you need.

Can I change the design of the site?

No. The website for every branch is generated from the same master template so it is not possible to change the design for an individual branch. You do not have access to the templates.

Will there be a link to my site from the main NATFHE site?

There will be if you let us know when you have completed your site. As we are not automatically notified when a new site comes online and we do not have time to check manually, it is up to you to let us know. Contact Babs Fotherby or Andrew Fall and we will add your site to our links page. You should also let us know if there is a defunct site that needs removing from our links page. Links to branch sites on the main site are on the links page at www.natfhe.org.uk/link/linkdoor.html. Don’t forget to publicise your new site through your existing information distribution systems (newsletters, emails etc). You could also look for relevant local websites that would be willing to put a link to your site eg your local student union site.

Do I need to know HTML code?

No. Learning a few tags would help you to improve the look of your site by adding bigger bolder headings, bullet points etc. but it is not necessary. In the guide there are instructions on how to create a site using only a paragraph tag to mark each paragraph. The important thing is to get the information to your members clearly and simply.

Can I set up newsgroups or chatrooms on my site?

No, this requires a more sophisticated set up than is available on this system.

Can I have forms such as a ballot form or questionnaire on my site?

No, this requires a more sophisticated set up than is available on this system.

Can I have links to other sites?

Yes. There is a special links page where you can put links to other sites. You can also put links to other sites within the text on any page if you know how to do it using HTML. See the guide to using the website editor for more information on this.