We are running the London Marathon for TACT (The Actors' Charitable Trust) 

 TACT’s children have special educational needs, or they are orphaned, or have a parent who is seriously ill.  TACT helps 190 children at present, from around the UK.

 

Just as there are benevolent funds for firefighters, nurses and the armed forces, so TACT was set up by actors.  We rely on the public’s kind donations, as well as the generosity of actors who are doing well, and legacies from actors.  We are so grateful for your support, which allows us to give more than £220,000 a year in grants to children, as well as providing full-time advice and support.

 

Core costs are kept to a minimum. TACT only has two staff, and its committee is made up of volunteers. We have no marketing or fundraising staff; we don’t pay any consultants.

 

These are examples of families TACT helps:

 

A lone parent of two pre-school children battled cancer without support from their father. TACT paid for emergency childcare whenever she was in hospital and helped prevent her being evicted from her home. TACT ensured she got the correct state benefits. Against medical prediction the mother has not only survived, but is now able gradually to move to full-time work as her children start school.  TACT continues to help with music lessons for the children, until their mother can cope with the cost herself.

 

A father with young children needed crisis childcare – a nanny – when his wife was dying and during the desperate months afterwards. While TACT ensured the state paid as much as possible, we were able to top up the amount so that the children had one consistent person caring for them. We continue to support childcare when it is needed, but the family has stayed together and dad is now working part-time. We have paid for some successful specialist counselling and medical help for one child, as NHS provision was not forthcoming.

 

A teenager with complex haemophilia has regular bleeds in his joints, not just causing great pain, but leaving him dependent on a wheelchair. TACT’s support has enabled him to keep up with school work and has enabled the extra mobility help needed on holidays.