Pole Sports Benevolent Fund

What is the Pole Sports Benevolent Fund?

POLE SPORTS BENEVOLENT FUND

It has become apparent that there are changes in the world of pole sports. Some people prefer to call it pole dance others pole fitness.  Call it what you like but due to the number of competitions, schools and the huge interest across the world, it is definitely becoming a mainstream and acceptable activity from whichever angle you look at it. More and more people are taking it up as a fun way to keep fit with some going on to teaching or entering competitions.

This means that standards are getting higher.  There is a lot of self-regulation going on with recognised fitness qualifications now available and a big campaign to get pole sports accepted as a sport worthy of being in the Olympics. This also means that people are learning to a higher advanced level and are therefore more prone to having accidents and injuries. A problem which can be devastating for anyone who is unable to work and experiences financial hardship because of it.

A lot of pole schools do charity events and have often found that this has met with disapproval because of the ignorance and negative attitudes towards the pole industry.  There is a lot being done to help overcome this such as The International Pole Sports Federation, The Pole Dance Community and many others but there is still a long way to go. This is why it is so important to have an industry related benevolent fund. It shows we recognise the seriousness of our chosen sport in relation to the fitness industry as a whole.

The Fund will give pole schools the opportunity to raise funds for a charity within their own industry and to know that the money raised will all go back to someone connected to pole who really needs it. We will offer international, national and regional events for everyone to take part in as well as helping to raise the profile of events that schools are doing themselves.

HOW WILL WE RAISE FUNDS?

• Through membership fees
• Putting on events for individuals and pole schools to take part in
• Donations 

HOW WILL WE DISTRIBUTE THE MONEY RAISED?

• By giving monetary grants to those in financial hardship
• Buying equipment for those who have been severely injured or disabled
• Paying for educational opportunities to those who may not be able to continue working in the pole industry due to injury, so they can retrain

WHO CAN APPLY TO THE FUND FOR HELP?

Anyone can apply although there will be limited funding available so priority will always be given to members of The Pole Sports Benevolent Fund

CONSTITUTION

The Pole Sports Benevolent Fund (the “Fund”) has been set up to offer a service to persons working or participating in the pole sports industry with a view to creating, sustaining and developing a fund of monies from which current and recent past persons can benefit in times of hardship. The aim of the PSBF is to develop this fund into a substantial safety net providing a measure of security for its members.

The PSBF is reviewing and examining ways of aiding those who are forced to retire from their sport due to injuries which are uninsured or are becoming increasingly difficult and expensive to insure, The Fund is being set up primarily to aid persons in this position, however other donations may be awarded on the grounds of extreme hardship brought on by other factors, and each case will be treated on individual merit.

The Fund will also consider claims by students of pole sports who are suffering from financial hardship due to an accident resulting in their inability to work. For the purpose of the Fund the PSBF define hardship as the possibility of losing one’s home due to rent or mortgage arrears, having the bailiffs sent in, or some other equally serious financial problem.

ADMINISTRATION

Trustees:

Three Trustees have been appointed by the PSBF executive board to administer the Fund. One of the Trustees will be appointed Chairman of the Trustees by the above Board. This will increase to five trustees within the first year and remain so.

At least three trustees must participate in any meeting to constitute a quorum.

The Trustees will meet at least twice per calendar year, but they may meet as is deemed necessary by the Chairman. If it is necessary to convene a meeting at short notice, a teleconference will be deemed acceptable.

ACCOUNTING

Funds raised and donations received for the fund will be held by The Pole Sports Benevolent Fund in a community bank account. The Fund may not be used for purposes other than those described in this Constitution.

Donations made by the Trustees of the Fund will be shown in the accounts, but the reasons for the donations will not be made available to PSBF members in order to protect the recipients. The Trustees are answerable to the PSBF Executive Board who may be given details of any amount awarded and the reasons for the award, but will keep such information strictly confidential.

DONATIONS FROM THE FUND

The purpose of the fund is to provide financial aid and relief to current and recent past pole sports participants (and their dependants) who are suffering hardships from career ending injuries which have not been alleviated by insurance or where any such insurance is inadequate. Other cases will be treated on individual merit in the absolute discretion of the Trustees.

The fund cannot pay for private medical insurance premiums and cannot pay for the costs involved in nursing or residential care. Nor can it provide money to set up businesses or provide for holidays. It cannot make loans to PSBF members, pay court fines, or fund legal cases unless deemed by the Trustees to have implications for the wider benefit of pole sport athletes in general.

Applications for donations must be made in writing with full medical evidence to the Chairman of the Trustees. The PSBF observes strict neutrality on political, social and religious grounds. No discrimination is permitted against any member or claimant or any association, club, or sportsman on political, racial, or religious grounds.

Until the Fund is sufficiently robust in the opinion of the Trustees, no single donation from the Fund will exceed an upper limit which will be set by the PSBF Executive Board acting on the recommendation of the Trustees.

MANDATE

AIM

Until recently there has been no safety net for pole fitness instructors, working pole dancers or pole sport athletes retiring from industry due to injury or in the event of extreme hardship or special need. There is also a concern that pole sport students may not be adequately covered by insurance in the case of an accident resulting in the student suffering from financial hardship through not being able to work.

As an integral part of its role in providing benefits and services to persons in this industry with approval and support from the International Pole Sports Federation, the Benevolent Fund has been set up to cover these eventualities. The PSBF will also work towards promoting adequate insurance and safety regulations for persons in the industry to adopt in an attempt to anticipate and prevent injuries leading to financial hardship.

BACKGROUND

Due to the popularity and recognition that pole sports and pole dance has, it became apparent that regulations needed to be put into place for this sport to achieve accredited status. This led to the development of the International Pole Sports Federation. It has also become apparent throughout the industry that as more people take up the sport and pursue it to a high level of athleticism, either as amateurs or professionals, there would be a higher level of serious injuries resulting in persons experiencing financial hardship.

This was brought to a head when a student fell from the pole and is now paralysed from the neck down. After discussions with a number of bodies representing professional athletes who already have benevolent funds in place, it was decided by several pole school owners that gaining charitable status for this type of fund would be essential.

MEMBERSHIP

There will be two tiers of membership, professional and student.  A professional member is deemed to be earning monies from any means in the pole sports or pole dance industry. This can be in any form including: performer, instructor and athlete. A student member is defined as a member who is learning by self-tuition or as part of a school and is not earning any monies from the pole industry. Members will need to pay an annual subscription in order to receive any benefits and an entitlement to make an application for a grant.

STRUCTURE

The fund sits in a community bank account. Income is being generated from:

•  PSBF Membership

•  Commercial sponsorship

•  Direct contributions

•  Benevolent fund events

There are two appointed board members responsible for the appropriation of funds. There are three board members responsible for making decisions about claims.

CLAIMS

It is possible to claim for the following situations:

• Injury – if a member has to retire from their sport due to a career ending injury
• Hardship – members who find themselves in financial difficulty
• Education – members who need to go back to university or have to go through career retraining after sport will be able to access support from the fund.
• One off need – there may be other exceptional circumstances which place members in a position of need. The panel will look at each case and judge it on its merits.

In each case the claims will need to have third party testimony to be considered and to complete in full a claim application form.  Medical testimonies may also be sought. The claim will be put to the board for consideration with an aim to having a decision made within twenty one days from receiving the application. 

The board will consist of a minimum of three members in the decision making process. In the event of a claim being rejected, the claimant will be advised of an appeal process that is available.

Claims will only be accepted on receipt of the application form being correctly filled in and priority will be given to members of the Pole Sports Benevolent Fund.  There will be no discrimination between professional or student members making an application. Upon discovery of any fraudulent applications, the PSBF will take legal action against the claimant.

www.polesportsbenevolentfund.org