Scribe

Partnership Policy

13.1 Purpose

SCRIBE may partner with organisations that support, or are compatible with, its principles of inclusion, dignity, privacy, equality, meaningful choice and reduction of unnecessary harm.

Partnerships may help extend research, public education, campaigning and practical reform.

13.2 Possible partners

Partners may include:

  • research groups;
  • charities;
  • community organisations;
  • publishers;
  • campaigning organisations;
  • educational organisations;
  • ethical businesses;
  • professional groups;
  • independent projects;
  • public-interest technology organisations.

13.3 Forms of partnership

A partnership may involve:

  • mutual recognition;
  • sharing public resources;
  • joint campaigns;
  • research collaboration;
  • events;
  • referral or signposting;
  • co-publication;
  • practical support;
  • promotion of compatible work;
  • an exchange of website logos.

13.4 Requirements

A potential partner should:

  • have purposes compatible with SCRIBE’s work;
  • provide accurate information about its identity and activities;
  • avoid materially misleading public claims;
  • respect applicable law;
  • disclose relevant conflicts;
  • treat people with basic dignity;
  • avoid using SCRIBE’s name beyond the agreed purpose.

Perfect agreement on every issue is not required.

13.5 Review

Before recognising a partner, SCRIBE may review:

  • its stated purposes;
  • public activity;
  • governance or ownership where relevant;
  • significant controversies;
  • treatment of privacy;
  • relationship to the proposed work;
  • risks of misleading endorsement.

The depth of review will be proportionate to the partnership.

13.6 Partner logo

Approved partners may display a small mark such as:

Partner of SCRIBE

or:

Working with SCRIBE

The mark indicates the specific relationship described by SCRIBE. It does not mean that SCRIBE endorses every statement, product, employee or activity of the partner.

SCRIBE may place a partner’s logo on its own website with permission.

13.7 Public register

SCRIBE may maintain a public page listing:

  • current partners;
  • the nature of each partnership;
  • joint projects;
  • relevant funding or sponsorship;
  • the date the relationship began.

13.8 Commercial relationships

Where a partner pays SCRIBE, receives money from SCRIBE or provides substantial in-kind support, that fact should be disclosed where it could affect interpretation.

Payment alone does not create partnership status or editorial endorsement.

13.9 Independence

Partners may express their own positions.

A partner may not:

  • dictate unrelated SCRIBE editorial conclusions;
  • represent itself as owning or controlling SCRIBE;
  • issue SCRIBE awards or certifications without authority;
  • claim government or regulatory recognition through the partnership;
  • use the relationship deceptively.

13.10 Ending a partnership

Either party may end a partnership according to any applicable agreement.

SCRIBE may immediately suspend or terminate recognition where:

  • the partner materially misrepresented the relationship;
  • serious misconduct becomes evident;
  • the relationship creates an unacceptable legal, ethical or reputational conflict;
  • the partnership no longer advances its stated purpose.

After termination, both parties should remove partnership logos and current-affiliation claims within a reasonable period.