The Self-Care Forum (SCF) is a charity that supports organisations and individual practitioners to help their communities and service users practise self-care, offering free resources and running the UK’s National Self-Care Awareness Week as well as conducting self-care research with support from its academic partner the Self-Care Academic Research Unit (SCARU) at Imperial College London. To continue to progress self-care and offer free resources, it is necessary to work with funding partners.
The SCF is a charity and as such does not have a regular funding source. Instead, it relies on donations, sponsorships, grants and is commissioned to produce fact-sheets and other self-care resources. Funders do not have any editorial input to its resources, although as experts in their field might be invited to fact-check content.
SCF works collaboratively with a range of organisations in the public, third and private sectors including industry partners and pharmaceutical companies. The SCF will always maintain its independence and will never compromise its ethics or integrity when working with others.
It is essential, therefore, that the SCF has a transparent policy for collaboration and partnerships. This policy is set out below:
- The SCF will maintain and develop co-operative relationships with other organisations, including government, NHS, local government and third-sector organisations, and those that develop, manufacture and market self-care products including medicines, technologies and other treatments.
- Partners and collaborators will uphold the SCF’s principles of independence, integrity and transparency.
- The SCF’s Annual Report will clearly state which organisations have supported its work that year, whether financially or in other ways, and by how much.
- Partnerships and collaborations with funding organisations will only happen if mutually beneficial.
- No organisation can expect to have an exclusive relationship with the SCF.
- Funding and other forms of support will only be accepted when a written agreement on the specific support offered has been accepted and signed by both parties.
- Partnerships and collaborations with organisations whose policies and activities are inherently detrimental to people’s health (e.g. the tobacco industry) will not be countenanced.
- Partnerships and collaborations will not be countenanced with organisations whose policies and activities systematically discriminate based on sex, age, colour, race, nationality, ethnic or national origins, religion or belief, disability, gender identity, sexual orientation or marital status.
- The SCF will not endorse branded medical products, treatments or devices, including pharmaceutical products whether available on prescription only or over the counter. In some circumstances, consideration may be given to supporting specific evidence-based non-medical non-branded products such as foods, health devices and supplements which contribute to improved health.
- Consideration will be given to endorsing patient information resources produced by the pharmaceutical industry and others but only when the information produced does not imply that the SCF supports or endorses any specific branded medical products, treatments or devices.
- Organisations should not claim or infer that an agreed partnership with the SCF represents endorsement of its policies, actions or products.
- Organisations must not use the SCF ‘s name or logo for promotional activities unless permission is given prior to its use along with strict guidance on how the name or logo can be used.
- The SCF reserves the right to withdraw from any partnership or collaboration if it is not being implemented according to the agreement or if it develops in a way that contradicts the Forum’s principles.