23-4-2020
The Goldsmiths’ Company and Charity launched its £1 million Covid-19 fund for jewellery and silversmithing industries in the United Kingdom
Applicants should be self-employed, sole traders, or running micro-businesses employing four people or fewer (including the applicant), to apply for a grant and/or an interest-free loan, by completing an online eligibility questionnaire. Successful applicants will receive £1,500 in instalments.
Goldsmiths’ Company prime warden Timothy Schroder said: “Many silversmiths and jewellers are either sole traders or small employers with little or no financial reserves, and in current circumstances it is impossible for them to make a living. Makers cannot source precious metal; even if they have it, they can’t get their goods hallmarked; and quite apart from that many of them depend on retailers or on fairs to sell. And most of these are currently closed or suspended. So, they are, or soon will be, in a very difficult place.”