ESTABLISHED 1946

 

The Lord’s Taverners is the UK’s leading youth cricket and disability sports charity whose objective is to give disadvantaged and disabled young people a sporting chance.

Our mission is to enhance the lives if disadvantaged and disabled young people through sport and recreation.

Our programmes support some of the most marginalised and at risk young people in the UK. We create a range of opportunities for young people from deprived areas and those with disabilities to engage in sport and recreational activities in their local communities.

For more information about the Lord’s Taverners, please visit www.lordstaverners.org
SPORTS FREELANCER COLLECTIVE UPDATE

Hi everyone. I hope this finds you well.

Please click the link below for the update I wrote for the Sport Freelancer Collective last night following the Chancellor's address.

Remember to consult your own individual accountants, and keep an eye on the Freelancer Collective for news of professionals who are offering their advice for free to group members.

https://www.sportsjournalists.co.uk/featured-news/sports-freelancer-collective-march-26-update/

Hopefully those of you who need to have signed up to the Sport Freelancer Collective email list. Email philippe.auclair.fwa@gmail.com  to request to be added.

Last night’s announcement will provide comfort to some, but nothing for many others. Please give feedback as indicated in the piece, keep talking to each other, and on a brighter note, don’t forget to pitch your ideas to Phil, Jo and Matt at The Pinch Hitter pinchhitter@trinorth.co.uk

Please also see below for useful resources at this time. If you've got any other resources that you consider relevant, please get in touch. 

Stay well, and be in touch,

Alison Mitchell, CWC Chair
27th March 2020

Useful Resources: 

Association of Independent Professionals and the Self Employed https://www.ipse.co.uk/

National Union of Journalists https://www.nuj.org.uk/home/

Grants and emergency funds:

Society of Authors (no need to be a member to apply) https://www.societyofauthors.org/Grants/contingency-funds

The Journalists Charity https://journalistscharity.org.uk/

The Authors Guild https://www.authorsguild.org/

The British Association of Journalists https://bajunion.org.uk/



​FROM THE SPORTS FREELANCER COLLECTIVE

Yesterday (Friday, March 20), the Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak announced the government will pay 80% of the salary of retained workers, up to a total of £2,500 per month. The measures for self-employed freelancers, however, still don’t go far enough.

Today the government has recognised our letter and assured us that they know freelancers have been hit. We will continue to liaise with the government and push for the measures we need, and keep you all updated. The Sports Freelancer Collective will consult over the weekend and discuss where we would like to see changes and how today’s measures will help or impact freelancers.

Measures to support freelancers now include:

- Access to Universal Credit to be paid at the rate of Statutory Sick Pay of £94.25 per week and a suspension of the minimum income floor.

- Deferral of Self-Assessment income tax from July 2020 to January 2021.

- Deferral of this quarter's VAT payments to June 2020 (remember all taxes will still need to be paid, just at a later date, alongside the other taxes that will be due at that time).

- Renters have been helped with £1bn of support, increasing housing benefit and Universal Credit so that Local Housing Allowance will cover at least 30% of market rents in an area.

- Anyone can seek to defer their mortgage payments by 3 months (be aware your mortgage payments may then be higher when you do resume payments, depending on your arrangements).

There is a lot to unpick about how some of this will apply, particularly to those freelancers who are part ‘PAYE employed for tax purposes’ and part self-employed.

In the meantime, all details are outlined here: https://www.gov.uk/coronavirus and here are some useful articles: 

https://www.theguardian.com/business/2020/mar/20/self-employed-coronavirus-crisis-sick-pay-redundancy-benefits 

https://www.ipse.co.uk/ipse-news/news-listing/coronavirus-ipse-activity-and-advice-freelancers.html#Government%20support 



FREELANCER FACEBOOK PAGE

A new Facebook group has been set up specifically for the Sport Freelancer Collective: https://www.facebook.com/groups/495051321162204/

If you’d like to be on the SFC email list for updates, please contact philippe.auclair.fwa@gmail.comquoting that you’re a member of the Cricket Writers’ Club.



NATIONAL UNION OF JOURNALISTS PETITION

The NUJ are requesting members to send in details of their situation as they join the cause for the self-employed. An online petition has also been set up, urging government to trial a Universal Basic Income. All info and links below, on the Sports Freelancer Collective page:

https://www.sportsjournalists.co.uk/featured-news/sports-freelancer-collective-update-march-19-nuj-info-sign-petition-legal-advice/



MESSAGE FROM THE CHAIR, ALISON MITCHELL

This is a truly difficult time for everybody and in particular for our self-employed freelance members who have had their work cancelled without pay in the wake of the measures to tackle coronavirus. People are obviously concerned about the season to come in the UK too. I’ll be communicating with the club internally, but to keep you as informed as possible, below is a useful site to follow, and a useful summary of the current position as regards UK Government support for the self-employed. Keep yourselves well, and I’ll be in touch.

https://www.ipse.co.uk/ipse-news/news-listing/coronavirus-ipse-activity-and-advice-freelancers.html

Alison Mitchell, CWC Chair
16th March 2020
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20/08/2019: Is Steve Smith The Ronaldo Of Cricket? Australia Odds Drift For Third Test

William Hill have been inundated by England cricket fans over the last 24 hours as Steve Smith was ruled out of the Third Test of the Ashes. Originally priced at Even money, Joe Root's men have been backed in to 8/15 via a bit of 4/5. Australia, on the other hand, have drifted from 11/10 to 11/8.

"There are only a few sportspeople in the world whose absence can cause their team's price to drift so much,” said William Hill spokesman Rupert Adams. "In the past, Ronaldo's absence for Portugal and Jonny Wilkinson's for England have done just that and now Steve Smith has joined the list."

Third Test winner:

8/15 England; 11/8 Australia; 13/2 draw

Man of the match:

6/1 Joe Root, 6/1 Jofra Archer, 9/1 Ben Stokes, 12/1 Stuart Broad, 12/1 Nathan Lyon, 12/1 Pat Cummins, 12/1 Mitchell Starc, 12/1 David Warner, 14/1 Chris Woakes, 14/1 Josh Hazlewood, 14/1 Rory Burns, 14/1 James Pattinson, 14/1 Jack Leach, 16/1 Usman Khawaja, 16/1 Travis Head, 16/1 Jonny Bairstow, 18/1 Jason Roy, 18/1 Peter Siddle, 20/1 Mitchell Marsh, 20/1 Marnus Labuschagne, 20/1 Sam Curran, 20/1 Cameron Bancroft, 20/1 Jos Buttler, 25/1 Matthew Wade, 25/1 Marcus Harris, 25/1 Joe Denly.
The objects of the CWC are to further the interests of those involved with the media coverage of cricket and of cricket as a whole.

The CWC will in no way endeavour to dictate policy or influence opinion in the cricket media nor have any concern with the policy of newspapers and other outlets: and at no time have any concern with the relations between employers and their staff as to who is employed.

Full Membership shall be open to all those employed full-time for not less than four months in any one calendar year in the media coverage of cricket in the United Kingdom. Honorary Life Members may be elected at the Annual General Meeting from those who have given distinguished service both to the profession of cricket writing and to the Club.

Associate Members may be elected by the Committee at any time from those engaged in writing, reporting, photographing, commentating, broadcasting and recording cricket on a part-time basis in the UK. Honorary Associate Members may be elected by the Committee at any time from distinguished former Full Members, senior touring writers, scorers of first-class counties, who may be invited, and such cricketing persons as the Committee may wish to invite.

Only Full Members and Honorary Life Members will have voting rights. Full Members and Associate Members will pay a subscription. Honorary Associate Members will be entitled to attend all meetings and functions and, if based in the United Kingdom, will receive Club mailings. Overseas Members may be elected by the Committee at any time from those engaged in writing, reporting, commentating, broadcasting and photographing cricket outside the United Kingdom and British Isles. They shall be entitled to attend all meetings and functions and may apply, by electronic mail, for all the Club's mailings.

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