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Film and Television Charity Family Support Fund

Balancing work and family life can be challenging, especially if you have people depending on you for their care and wellbeing. Working in the turbulent world of film and commercial TV can make it even harder to fund alternative arrangements to ensure the people you care for are looked after when you are away from home, whether for a meeting or a location shoot.

In a new partnership, Raising Films and the Film and Television Charity have joined forces to support professionals working behind the scenes in Film, TV and cinema exhibition. We have launched a 12-month pilot scheme –  the Family Support Fund – with the aim of providing a helping hand to those who are juggling a professional career with their caring responsibilities on a limited budget. The Fund aims to provide short-term support to individuals or families to bridge a period of reduced income, rather than to provide financial support for a long period of time.

The Film and Television Charity is able to support Raising Films’ registered members by contributing up to £75 a day to help cover the cost of alternative care arrangements (max claimant amount £1,500 per beneficiary/per annum). Multiple applications can be submitted throughout the year and quotes can vary from one day to multiple days.

Applications can be submitted up to 30 days past the date care was required, from 1 January 2017; however the Film and Television Charity prefers to receive applications in advance. Payments will be made directly to the care providing organisation / business, and only in exceptional circumstances can a payment be made to the applicant (to re-imburse them for prior outlay).

In the event that the Fund is extended past its initial 12-month pilot period, carers who have claimed up to the full amount of £1,500 during the pilot year may not be eligible to access the Fund the following year. This is to avoid long term reliability on the Fund as this is not its aim.

Please note this fund is a pilot and therefore there is currently a limit to the number of beneficiaries we can support. We hope you will bear with us as we gauge the demand.

How to apply:

Are you a professional with a minimum two years’ experience (consecutive or non-consecutive) within the TV/film/cinema industry; do you work behind the camera in any role (production/writing/editing, etc); and do you have caring responsibilities for a child/children, and/or a dependent adult and/or an elderly relative? Do you struggle to cover the cost of alternative care which would allow you to comply with work demands, such as attending interviews, meetings and attend training or networking events? Do you have a household income less than £50,000 per annum and have no more than £10,000 in savings? If you answer ‘yes’ to all these questions, you qualify and can apply for support.

To complete an application form, please log-in as a member and find the thread entitled ‘Do you need help returning to work?’ for the application link. Do note that you will be expected to provide the Film and Television Charity with details of your household income and spending; and the quote/receipt/bill from the care providing company, plus their account details for payment. To start the process, you can send an enquiry, or email the support team on: [email protected].

2018-11-12T12:59:49+00:00January, 2017|Our Work, The Family Support Fund|