Contact a Family is calling on parents to tell their story of raising a disabled child in a national competition which aims to highlight the many issues they face.

On the theme of ‘Me and my disabled child’, we want you to make a short video about the joys and challenges of caring for a disabled child. It can be an entirely personal account – perhaps your own video diary. You could choose to film a ‘day in your life’ showing your everyday experiences of raising a disabled child in the community you live in. It might look at a particular time, for example when you first learned that your child may be disabled and talk about your feelings and experiences then. Or perhaps you want to highlight a particular challenge you face – using public transport, coping with behavioural problems, living with difference and peoples attitudes, attending endless assessments and meetings. You decide.

If you don’t have a video camera, or have other creative impulses, you could tell your story in an essay. Alternatively, you could make an audio recording or take a picture.

All entries will be considered in a category alongside those other entries using the same media, with a chance to win a digital camera – and for the over all winner, a laptop.

The best clips, pics and stories will be featured on our website and other online channels such as Youtube, and in our magazine Connected. And we’re sure with your story, in your words – or images - we’ll raise public awareness of the challenges all families with disabled children face every day.

The competition has been launched in the run up to Contact a Family’s 30th anniversary and entries are invited from any family member or friend involved in caring for a disabled child since the charity was set up in 1979.

Submitting your entry
Deadline for entries is 30th November 2008. Digital photos and videos, podcasts and word documents can be submitted by email to new.media@cafamily.org.uk with ‘Competition’ in the subject header. You can submit either as an attachment (no more than 4MB) or link. All others – printed or handwritten stories, photographs, tapes, DVDs, etc. - can be posted to: Competition, Contact a Family, Freepost Lon8801, London EC1B 1EE.

Video entries should be no longer than three minutes, and essays no longer than 2000 words.

You can also submit video entries to YouTube and send us an email with the link, your name and a short descriptive paragraph of your clip. Please note that you will need a YouTube account in order to upload your video and it must adhere also to the Terms and Conditions of their service.

If you need help or advice on uploading your video to YouTube – or any other aspect of the competition - contact our New Media Officer, Louis Yung-Hoi on 020 7608 8727 or e-mail: louis.yung-hoi@cafamily.org.uk.

Hobbs the Printers have very kindly donated all prizes for the competition.

Terms and conditions
1. This competition is open to residents of the UK, Channel Islands, Isle of Man and Republic of Ireland aged 18 years or over, except for employees of Contact a Family, their families or anyone else associated with this competition.
2. All information detailing how to enter this competition forms part of these terms and conditions. It is a condition of entry that all rules are accepted as final and that the competitor agrees to abide by these rules. The decision of the judges is final and no correspondence will be entered into. Submission of an entry will be taken to mean acceptance of these terms and conditions.
3. Entries should be submitted by 30 November 2008 and entrants should include their own name, address and telephone number. Entries will not be returned.
4. All entries must be received by the advertised closing time and date.
5. All entries submitted must be the work of the individual submitting them and must not have been published elsewhere or have won a prize in any other competition. It is the responsibility of each entrant to ensure that any images they include have been taken with the permission of the subject and do not infringe the copyright of any third party or any laws. Entrants must warrant that the video, writings, photographs or audio recording they are submitting is their own work and that they own the copyright for it.
6. Copyright in all videos, writings, images and audio recordings submitted for this competition remains with the respective entrants. However, in consideration of their providing the Competition, each entrant grants a worldwide, irrevocable, perpetual licence to Contact a Family to feature any or all of the submitted works in any of their publications, their websites and/or in any promotional material connected to this competition.
7. Only one entry per person. Late, illegible, incomplete, defaced or corrupt entries will not be accepted. No responsibility can be accepted for lost entries and proof of transmission will not be accepted as proof of receipt. Entries must not be sent through agencies or third parties.
8. The winning entry will be that that is judged to be the most compelling account of life for a family caring for a disabled child. The winner will be notified within 28 days of the closing date of the competition.
9. The winning entrant for each category – video, written stories, audio recordings, and photography - shall win a Nikon ‘Coolpix’ digital camera and the overall winner will win a Dell laptop.
10. The winners may be required to take part in publicity.
11. The winner’s name and county may be disclosed to anyone who writes within one month after the published closing date, stating the date of publication and enclosing a stamped addressed envelope, to Contact a Family 209 City Road London EC1V 1JN.
12. The prizes as described are available on the date of publication. All prizes are non transferable and there are no cash alternatives.
13. Events may occur that render the competition itself or the awarding of the prizes impossible due to reasons beyond the control of the Promoter and accordingly the Promoter may at its absolute discretion vary or amend the promotion and the entrant agrees that no liability shall attach to the Promoter as a result thereof.
14. Contact a Family is responsible for the first part of the promotion, which is the publication and adjudication of the competition. All other facilities connected with the provision of the prize are the responsibility of Hobbs Printers.
15. English law applies and the exclusive jurisdiction of the English Courts shall prevail.

Promoter: Contact a Family 209 City Road London EC1V 1JN