The Furniture Makers’ Company, the City of London livery company and charity for the furnishing industry, continues to support employees and sole traders working in the trade who have been financially disadvantaged by the Covid-19 crisis.
Throughout the pandemic, the charity has been awarding Personal Support Grants to members of the trade who have been furloughed with reduced pay, made redundant or unable to work.
The organisation remains committed to helping as many people who have been adversely affected as possible, and is encouraging those in need to apply for a Personal Support Grant: individuals can apply for a monthly grant of £200 for a maximum of four months; couples can apply for a monthly grant of £250 for a maximum of four months; and sole traders can apply for a one-off grant of £500.
Jonny Westbrooke, CEO of The Furniture Makers’ Company, says: “During these extremely difficult times, colleagues from the wider furnishing industry will need our support more than ever before and we want everyone working in the trade – shop staff, production workers, designers, makers, interior designers, sales staff, and everyone in between – to know that we are ready to help them.”
Businesses in the industry are encouraged to raise awareness of the charity among their employees by signing up to the organisation’s One Step at a Time campaign.
One Step at a Time was launched in 2019 to encourage companies to commit to communicating the support the charity provides to their employees. Once a business is signed up as a One Step Champion, the charity provides a suite of tools to help promote the message, including a certificate of involvement, posters, flyers, case studies and social media content, and will keep the business up-to-date with news on how The Furniture Makers’ Company can support their employees.
Karen Clarridge, group head of HR at Whitemeadow, one of the charity’s first One Step Champions, comments: “During hard times – which, let’s face it, we all go through at some time or another during our lives – we can’t have enough help, and the assistance available from The Furniture Makers’ Company enhances the support given by Whitemeadow Furniture to our employees.”
Click here to sign up to One Step at a Time.
