https://wiki.ilovefreegle.org/index.php?action=history&feed=atom&title=Standard_MessagesStandard Messages - Revision history2026-07-17T13:56:12ZRevision history for this page on the wikiMediaWiki 1.43.0https://wiki.ilovefreegle.org/index.php?title=Standard_Messages&diff=56125&oldid=prevRevampBot: Wiki revamp: restructure & modernise2026-07-17T12:00:00Z<p>Wiki revamp: restructure & modernise</p>
<p><b>New page</b></p><div><div style="font-size:.88em;color:#777;margin-bottom:10px">[[Main Page|Freegle Volunteer Wiki]] &rsaquo; ✉️ '''Standard Messages'''</div><br />
These are the message templates moderators send to an individual member about their own post - approving it, declining it, asking them to change something, or just answering a question they've raised. Find the situation you're dealing with below, copy the wording into ModTools or your reply, and personalise it with the member's name, yours, and your community's before sending. They're grouped roughly in the order you'll meet them: welcoming and approving, asking for clarification, declining things that aren't allowed, and the trickier one-off situations.<br />
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== Welcoming and approving members ==<br />
* '''[[Welcome Message]]''' - send (or store as an automated file) to welcome a new member and set out your community's local rules and safety notices.<br />
* '''[[Sample message: Approve and unmod]]''' - use once a member's first post has gone well, to take them off moderation and thank them for posting correctly.<br />
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== Asking for clarification ==<br />
* '''[[Sample message: Clarify]]''' - use when a Wanted post is too vague, to ask the member to add more detail so others know if they can help.<br />
* '''[[Information request]]''' - use when someone posts a question rather than an offer or wanted, to explain it belongs in Chitchat instead.<br />
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== Declining posts that aren't reusable items ==<br />
* '''[[Intangible Items]]''' - use when someone offers or asks for a service rather than a physical item, which isn't what the Offer/Wanted board is for.<br />
* '''[[Sample message: Non landfill items]]''' - use when a post isn't keeping anything out of landfill, so it falls outside what Freegle exists to do.<br />
* '''[[Sample message: Event]]''' - use when someone tries to advertise a charity or community event via an offer/wanted post, to point them at the Events feature instead.<br />
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== Declining restricted or regulated items ==<br />
* '''[[Sample message: Animals]]''' - use when a post offers or requests a live animal, which most communities don't allow.<br />
* '''[[Sample message: Medicines and supplements]]''' - use when someone offers medicines, over-the-counter products or regulated supplements, which aren't allowed.<br />
* '''[[Sample message: Weapons]]''' - use when a post offers or requests any kind of weapon.<br />
* '''[[Sample message: Condoms]]''' - use when a member asks for free condoms, so you can point them to NHS sexual health services instead.<br />
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== Money, selling and swaps ==<br />
* '''[[Sample message: Money, selling, swaps]]''' - use when a post asks for payment, or is really a sale or swap rather than a free, no-strings gift.<br />
* '''[[Sample message: Not selling]]''' - use when a Trash Nothing member has accidentally tagged their Wanted post as being for resale.<br />
* '''[[Sample message: Reselling]]''' - use when you suspect a member is reselling items they've received, to ask them to declare it openly.<br />
* '''[[Sample message: Vouchers]]''' - use when a member offers or requests vouchers or tickets, which belong in Chitchat rather than the Offer/Wanted boards.<br />
* '''[[Sample message: Borrowing or lending]]''' - use when a post asks to borrow or lend an item rather than give it away outright.<br />
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== Copyright and legal issues ==<br />
* '''[[Sample message: Copyright]]''' - use when someone offers copied software, DVDs, CDs or other media that may breach copyright.<br />
* '''[[Sample message: Legal threat]]''' - use when a member threatens legal action, so you can end direct contact and hand the matter to Freegle's central team.<br />
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== Posting frequency and duplicates ==<br />
* '''[[Sample message: Duplicate message]]''' - use when the same post has come through more than once by mistake.<br />
* '''[[Sample message: Offer too soon]]''' - use when a member reposts an Offer before your community's minimum gap between posts has passed.<br />
* '''[[Sample message: Wanted too soon]]''' - use when a member reposts a Wanted too soon after their last one.<br />
* '''[[Sample message: Too many wanteds]]''' - use when a member has posted more Wanted requests than your community's limit allows.<br />
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== Personal safety and getting in touch properly ==<br />
* '''[[Sample message: Personal details]]''' - use when a post includes a phone number, address or other personal details that should stay private.<br />
* '''[[Sample message: Sob stories]]''' - use when a Wanted post includes a lot of personal or sensitive detail, to check the member is happy for it to be seen by everyone.<br />
* '''[[Sample message: Contact member]]''' - use when someone posts an offer or wanted purely to try to reach a specific other member.<br />
* '''[[Sample message: Moderator assistance request]]''' - use when a member posts asking to speak to a moderator, so you can reply to them directly instead.<br />
* '''[[Sample message: Reply to post via offer/wanted]]''' - use when a member replies to someone else's post by posting a new one instead of using the reply button.<br />
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== Account problems ==<br />
* '''[[Sample message: Hacked]]''' - use when a member's account appears to have been hacked or is sending out spam.<br />
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== Which community to join ==<br />
* '''[[Sample message: Joining distant Freegle communities]]''' - use when a member has joined communities a long way from where they live.<br />
* '''[[Sample message: Joining multiple Freegle communities]]''' - use when a member has joined an unusually large number of communities.<br />
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== No-shows ==<br />
* '''[[Sample message: No-shows]]''' - use when a member complains that someone failed to turn up to collect an item, so you can offer to follow it up.<br />
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== Common questions ==<br />
* '''[[Sample message: Is Freegle a Charity?]]''' - use when a member asks whether Freegle is a registered charity.<br />
* '''[[Sample message: Old posts]]''' - use when a member asks why they can't delete items from their list of old posts.<br />
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<div style="color:#777;font-size:.9em">Prefer to browse? Every page here is also listed A-Z in the [[:Category:Standard Messages|Standard Messages index]]. Back to the [[Main Page|home page]].</div><br />
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