ABSTRACT
The kinds of formalising document that you may choose may be a Memorandum of Understanding between two or more organisations, a Partnership Agreement, Terms of Reference for a group, ground rules for how certain kinds of meeting will operate. The degree of detail and formality is something for the collaborators to agree between themselves. Some collaboration does go on to become stand-alone organisations in their own right, often with complex governance structures which ensure that different parts of the system are represented in decision-making. Two examples are the Marine Stewardship Council and the Forest Stewardship Council. The pilot collaborative initiatives taking forward the catchment-based approach to improving river systems in England have had a variety of structures. Including some supported by staff from one or two organisations spending a lot of their time behind the scenes bringing players together, running meetings and drafting documents.
