Covid fund for freelancers in Wales sees 'high demand'

The fund gives £2,500 to successful applicants whose work in arts and culture has been hit by Covid

A fund for struggling Welsh freelancers was so swamped that it closed to some applicants in under an hour.

The £7m support package went live at 10:00 BST on Monday on a first come, first served basis.

The Welsh Government money is being administered by local authorities, and the demand forced Cardiff council to close its application process after about 50 minutes.

One applicant said he had been "broken" by the experience.

The fund will provide £2,500 to successful applicants whose work in the arts and culture sector has been affected by the coronavirus pandemic.

Local authorities will open a second phase at an unspecified future date.

The Welsh Government said there had been "high demand" but that the second phase of the scheme would be available to those who missed out.

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It said that would begin "as soon as possible", but it could not confirm if it would also operate on a first come, first served basis.

Distribution is split between local authorities, with freelancers applying to councils based on where they live.

Alun Saunders is a playwright, actor, and a drag performer.

When the lockdown happened he was working on two projects which were put on hold and he had just begun a tour of Welsh theatres as his drag alter-ego, Connie Orff, which was cancelled.

For the past six months he has been home-schooling his children and doing food deliveries.

"I'll be honest, this broke me today," he said.

"Luckily, through the self-employment scheme I've been able to have some breathing space.

"There are many, many schemes out there which I'm not able to apply for so this was the one I was banking on to see me through for the next few months.

"And so when that just said 'Closed, you can apply again in a few weeks', I've hit a brick wall and it's just left me… done.

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Cardiff council closed its application process after less than an hour because of the demand, while technical difficulties meant some areas were delayed in opening their applications.

A spokesperson said it had reached "maximum capacity" for applications at around 11:00 and that its second phase would open "in the coming weeks".

Blaenau Gwent council opened its application process on Monday afternoon, while Conwy will not be accepting applications until Wednesday.

Mr Saunders said the uncertainty about the timing of the next round of funding was a concern for freelancers.

"All we were told was that there'll be a second round, but it's such a mystery and there's no idea.

"Is it in two weeks? Is it in three weeks? Is it next month?

"Most people can't turn to the mortgage companies and banks and say, 'well, at some point, I'll be able to pay the mortgage'.

"People need that information. They need clarity. They're just not getting it."

A Welsh Government spokesperson said: "The freelance fund was always intended to be delivered in two phases.

"There has been high demand across Wales on the opening of the fund and a number of local authorities have reached or are about to reach their maximum application capacity for phase one of the fund.

"Advice received in discussion with the freelance sector and unions prior to the fund opening was for the fund to be delivered over two phases to allow those who needed more time to apply to be able to do so.

"We are working with each local authority to open up phase two as soon as possible."