Practical advice for creatives affected by the Covid-19 emergency

The Creative Industries Federation, the UK’s national organisation dedicated to the creative sector, has collated and published a library of advice resources for those affected by the Covid-19 outbreak and its fallout. The directory brings together practical guidance from a number of official bodies including the government’s budget support and tax helpline for those affected, plus organisations such as the Association of Independent Professionals and the Self-Employed (IPSE) and the Federation of Small Businesses.

The Federation plans to create a live and regularly updated webpage with all the information (which we will share when live) but for now you can find it here and some of that key information below.

On its Twitter account, the federation also says its director of policy, Caroline Julian, will be discussing the “concerns and needs of the creative industries” with London mayor Sadiq Khan and the UK’s department for digital, culture, media and sport (DCMS) today (16 March) and tomorrow, and invites contribution to the discussion on any specific concern.

General advice:

Official government advice including sections for employers and businesses
EU guidance on COVID-19
Budget 2020 support for those affected by COVID-19

Guidance for self-employed:

Advice from IPSE(the Association of Independent Professionals and the Self Employed)
Government tax helpline to support freelancers being affected by Coronavirus
Employment Support Allowance
Universal Credit

Guidance for businesses:

Government support for businesses
Government tax helpline to support businesses being affected by Coronavirus
Federation of Small Businesses guidance for small businesses
ACAS (the Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service) workplace guidance for employees and employers
Bates Wells blog, which includes useful employment operations advice

Advice from unions and sector support organisations:

BECTU
UKIE

Also, the Arts Council has announced it will realign its strategies to support people affected, meaning it will refocus grant programmes to compensate individual artists and freelancers for lost earnings. See this Twitter thread for more information.