RELATIONSHIP ASSESSMENT TOOL
Purpose of this Document

This toolis designed to help Alcohol Research UK and its potential partners to make a mutual assessment of the appropriateness of entering into a new relationship. Its primary use will be in cases where:

-a potential donor/ funder is considering funding Alcohol Research UK on a conditional basis (e.g. to undertake a particular area of research or to sponsor an activity)

-Alcohol Research UK and the potential partner are considering jointly funding or undertakingsome work (e.g. a grant or an event)

The tool considers a range of factors, such as respective organisational values, and allows each party to determine:

-the desirability of entering into a relationship in the first place

-the suitability of specific pieces of work that might be undertaken together (a “fit for purpose” review)

-the terms of an overarching written agreement that will be entered into before commencing the relationship and a separate one that will be entered into beforeundertaking any specific pieces of work

This document will normally be completed together in a face-to-face meeting between the parties.

ALCOHOL RESEARCH UK
Background

Alcohol Research UK was launched in September 2011. Its charitable object is ‘the reduction of alcohol-related harm to individuals, families and communities’. It will achieve this by funding research and other projects that help improve understanding of the causes of alcohol harm, the problems it creates and the solutions that work best in tackling it.

Alcohol Research UK wants to increase its income so that it can fund more research. It wants to ensure that the research it funds is important and of high quality and it wants to see the findings having an impact on policy and practice. Alcohol Research UK wants to create the leading evidence base on alcohol harm and to be a major player and influencer in its field.

Vision

We want to see a reduction in levels of alcohol-related harm through ensuring that policy and practice can be developed on the basis of reliable, research-based, evidence.

Mission

We work to reduce levels of alcohol-relatedharm by ensuring that policy and practice can always be developed on the basis of research-basedevidence. We are a lead funder of high quality research into the causes, impact and prevention of alcohol-related harm and are the only organisation exclusively dedicated to building an evidence base in this area.

Scope of work

Alcohol Research UK achieves its mission through the following activities:

•Fundingnew research(from its endowment fund and by raising voluntary income) that can contribute to reducing alcohol-related harm

•Effectively managing the research process on behalf of other individuals and organisationswho wish to inform policy and practice

•Identifying existing research that contributes to reducing alcohol related harm

•Consolidating research into one accessible source to ensure that others are able to base their policy and practice on the latest evidence

Positioning

Independent–we are governed by a board of trustees that represents the diversityand complexity of the issues relating to alcohol harm reduction, including publichealth, clinicians, marketing experts, practitioners, alcohol industry and academiccommunity. We regularly refresh and review our governance arrangements to makesure that it is representative of the key issues relating to alcohol harm. We do notaccept funds directly from the alcohol industry.

Objective – through the promotion of the existing evidence base we aim to be abalanced and objective voice in the policy debate. We have no vested interest otherthan promoting the existing evidence base and highlighting, identifying and filling gaps in it, through the provision of research funding to the scientificresearch community and other projects that contribute to the evidence-base.

Evidence-based – We are experts in the current evidence base around alcohol harmand alcohol harm reduction and highlight where evidence is clear and where furtherresearch is needed.

Accessible - We aim to make links between the research community, policy makersand the public, in order to increase awareness of the causes as well as the problemsrelating to alcohol harm.

Five year goals

Goal 1 - Increase the quantity of research that we fund

Goal 2 –Improve the way we evaluate and disseminate important research findings

THE DESIRABIL

TIONSHIP ITHE DESIRABILITY OF A RELATIONSHIP IN THE FIRST PLACE N THE FIRST PLACE

SECTION ONE

ONSHIP ITHE DESIRABILITY OF A RELATIONSHIP IN THE FIRST PLACE N THE FIRST PLACE

ASSESSMENT OF THE OVERALL DESIRABILITY OF A RELATIONSHIP
1(a) The Discussion

This assessment was completed on ...... at a meeting attended by ...... of Alcohol Research UK and

...... of ......

1 (b)The Benefits of Working Together

Alcohol Research UKis keen to enter into relationships that will increase progress in reducing alcohol related harm.How would this relationship help to achieve this? What other benefits would entering into this relationship bring?

Benefits to Partner / Benefits to Alcohol Research UK
1 (c) Managing Reputations

Are there any risks of either party’s reputation being damaged by this relationship, for example:

-Are the respective mission and values compatible?

-Might the association generate negative views amongst either party’sother stakeholders/ customers?

-Would one party have undue influence (whether real or perceived) over the work of the other, including the integrity of any proposed research?

-Would any funds given to Alcohol Research UK comply with its policies on the acceptance or refusal of donations?

If so, can these be managed?

Risk / How it Will be Managed
1 (d)The Written Agreement

Are there any additions or amendments that need to be made to the standard overarching written agreement between the two parties?

LATIONSHIP ITHE DESIRABILITY OF A RELATIONSHIP IN THE FIRST PLACE N THE FIRST PLACE

SECTION TWO

ONSHIP ITHE DESIRABILITY OF A RELATIONSHIP IN THE FIRST PLACE N THE FIRST PLACE

UNDERTAKING WORK TOGETHER

This section should be completed for each new and distinct piece of work that the parties propose to undertake together. Usually, an outline proposal for the work will already have been drafted and this will form the basis of a face-to-face discussion.

Once the assessment has been completed, Alcohol Research UK will follow established internal processes to determine whether the proposal is ‘fit for purpose’ and it wishes to go ahead. These are explained in Appendix 1.

Alcohol Research UK wants to give partnership-working every opportunity. As such, if the proposal is not considered to be ‘fit for purpose’ in the first instance, Alcohol Research UK will make recommendations as to how it might be made acceptable. RELATIONSHIP IN THE FIRST PLACE N THE FIRST PLACE

2 (a)Assessing the Appropriateness of Each Piece of Work
Criterion / Recommendations as to how the proposal could be improved or made more acceptable
USABI L ITY / Will the work make a clear contribution to the reduction of alcohol-related harm?
•Are there clear objectives that fit with each party’s mission?
•Will other people benefit from using the results of this work? In particular, is it likely to help develop wider policy and practice?
•Are the timetable and budget realistic, given the objectives?
KNOWLEDGE / Will the work add significantly to the existingevidence base, or help in its dissemination?
•is anyone else already doing this work/ has anyone else already conducted this research (or is planning to)?
•is other work being carried out in this area to which this proposal could be aligned?
•is there a suitable plan for evaluating the work and for measuring its impact e.g. on policy and practice
INTEGRITY / Will the work be undertaken in an appropriate manner?
•Is it compatible with each party’s mission and values
•is it clear who is responsible for delivering each stage of the work?
•is there a risk of undue influence from either party?
•will each party have freedom of expression and the ability to disseminate any findings that arise as they see fit?
For research:
•does it meet all of Alcohol Research UK’s standards for inviting and assessing applications and for the delivery of research?
•is there an acceptable dissemination plan, including assurances that research findings will be available to the general public?
•will the findings be used for inappropriate commercial or political gain?

FIRST PLACE

2 (b) Reviewing Progress in Delivering Work Together (‘Interim Review’)

Where a specific piece of work extends over a longer period of time, it will be helpfulfor both parties to review how both the work and the relationship are progressing from time to time. Normally, this will happen when there is a natural opportunity (e.g. at the end of each phase of a multi-phase project), or every six months, whichever is the sooner.The following questions will help to guide the review.

Criterion / If the answer to any of the questions is ‘no’, please explain and describe what action will be taken e.g. ‘change objectives’
USABILITY / Is the work continuing to/ did the first phase achieve its objectives?
Have any interim findings been used or disseminated appropriately?
Have the timetable and budget been adhered to?
KNOWLEDGE / Does it still look as though the work will add to the evidence-base on alcohol-related harm?
Has any other work been identified that has the same objectives? If so, is alignment possible?
Does the evaluation plan need to be changed?
INTEGRITY / Have the parties acted according to the written agreement?
Have there been any other problems e.g. with either party’s ability to manage the work, avoiding undue influence or adhering to agreed standards?
Is there still confidence that the workwill benefit society and not be used for inappropriate commercial or political gain?
Does the dissemination plan need to be changed?
Are both parties to continue with the work?
2 (c) Final Review of Work that is Delivered Together

Within three months of the work being completed, a final review will take place. The following questions will help to guide the review.

Criterion / If the answer to any of the questions is ‘no’, please explain and describe what action has been/ will be taken
USABILITY / Did the work achieve its objectives?
Have the findings been used or disseminated appropriately?
Were the timetable and budget adhered to?
KNOWLEDGE / Has the work contributed to the evidence-base on alcohol-related harm?
Was any other work identified that has the same objectives? If so, did alignment take place?
How has the work been evaluated or what are the plans for doing so?
Has there been an impact on policy and practice and how will this be measured in the long-term?
INTEGRITY / Have both parties acted according to the written agreement?
Has the way the work has been managed met each party’s expectations and standards?
Has the work benefited society and not been used for inappropriate commercial or political gain?
Have the findings beendisseminated appropriately?
Are there plans to work together in the future?
ANNEX 1 SUMMARY OF PROCESS FOR CONSIDERING AND DELIVERING SPECIFIC PIECES OFWORK WITH OTHER PARTIES

1

Approach to reviewing funding relationships, April 2012