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Once the magnitude of the problem has been clearly defined, the key state players identified, and the infrastructure is in place, the next step is enlarging the core working group.

The process of building coalition membership has a natural progression. In many states, the efforts of the coalition begin with a smaller core group that is central to its creation. This small group may be called by various names: a planning group, steering committee, taskforce, facilitating body, coordinating team, or core group. However, their role is still the same. This core group establishes the groundwork for the coalition by recruiting members, planning the first coalition meeting, and drafting the coalition’s mission and goals.

An enlarged membership is responsible for debating and agreeing to the coalition’s mission, goals and activities. The coalition then reaches out to even more organizations, individuals, policymakers, and stakeholders in the state who may not be active coalition members, but nevertheless, want to be informed about its activities and who can potentially aid its efforts. The typical fall prevention coalition is structured as seen in the image below