About us

Representation

Scallywags is a child model agency based in Hoxton, London. We have been representing babies, children and teenagers for work in advertising, photographic, fashion and television commercials since 1984.

Our clients are advertising agencies, photographers, editorial magazines, fashion and production companies.Whilst the majority of the work is in London you will also find jobs around other UK cities.

Our team of bookers are always sourcing new clients, collaborating with them and assisting them on bookings. We fully manage our models, from sending them on auditions, confirming shoot details to invoicing clients and paying the models.

If you would like to see what our parents say head over to our Facebook Page.

How it Works

Representation

Once you have an active membership our bookers will send your child’s profile to clients whenever they match a job brief. To better assist us please use high quality photos and studio shots where available.

Measurements are also quite important, especially as the industry has a very fast turnaround. If our bookers can get your childs profile over to a client first without waiting on new measurements it will greatly increase our chances of securing a booking.

The job board is there so you can see what we are working on. You can help us by being proactive and letting us know what you are available for by clicking the I’m Available button.

Because our bookers make numerous suggestions each day, we can only contact you when your child is booked or if we require more information.

Our first port of call will be to contact you by phone. We recommend you store your mobile number with us. We will usually start sending out emails with details as outgoing calls are being made. If we don’t get through to you we will leave a message and continue to try and reach you.

The auditions are between 4-6pm for school age children and earlier in the day for babies and pre-schoolers. Jobs will mostly be during the day so time out of school is necessary. It is a professional working industry and our clients shoot times reflect that.

Most of these bookings come in with very short notice, usually next day. Being available to attend will obviously increase your child’s chances of success with us.

We would love it if you can make every audition but we realise that parents have work and other commitments. Our bookers will try to hide their disappointment if you tell them you can’t go! It’s helpful to inform us of holiday dates or other general unavailability. If you can’t make it after you have confirmed please be sure to let us know. This will allow us to replace your child with another and give someone else the opportunity.

We need to get school permission for shoots. Most schools are aware of how the industry is. Unless you land a permanent role in a TV show it will just be the odd day here and there. For permanent roles and touring, private education is always provided. Our bookers will help you through the simple license application process when the occasion arises.

Our bookers get a great sense of achievement when our kids get booked and are filled with pride whenever we see them on TV or in magazines. However, it’s up to the casting directors, clients and photographers on who is seen and ultimately booked.

Become a Member

Apply

First you’ll need to apply, it’s super easy. Just sign up using your email address and start filling out your childs profile. You will need to have some photos ready to upload for us to assess.

Once your child’s profile is complete you click a button to apply. This can be done at any time during the year and your child will be put in a queue for assessment.

Once we receive your online application it will be reviewed by the members of our team. Response time can vary but it shouldn’t be longer than a week. You might hear from us sooner if we are working on a job that your child matches.

Last year we received over 38,000 applications! We can’t take everyone on as we would not be able to offer that many children a good enough chance of securing auditions and bookings.

Our clients also expect to only receive prime candidates from us. For these reasons we can only accept a certain percentage for each age group. If you don’t get in first time please give it a few months before trying again as our circumstances may have changed.

Membership

Once you receive an offer of representation from us you will need to become a member. By becoming a member you will have your child’s profile made active so it can be submitted to and viewed by our clients.

We offer two membership bands. You can go for a monthly or annual option. Subscriptions are £20 per month or £100 per year.

N.B. The membership fee is to be included on the Scallywags website so the agency has a platform to send models to clients. Much the same was as The Spotlight functions for actors.

We take on new borns to teens. We are a sole agency. There are some exceptions so please check if you are unsure.

Your First Assignment

The audition can be anything from a 15 minute chat with you and your child, to a much longer session where the child will be asked to go through some of the motions that will be required from them on the shoot.

Photographs will probably be taken, perhaps even a screen test with a recording on video. Young children may be asked to play games to see if they can accept direction. Older children, going for a part in a drama may be asked to read something from the script.

You are not told immediately the result of the audition. If your child is chosen we are normally informed within a few days.

Once your child has been confirmed for the job we will negotiate all contracts and rates with our client. The fees will then be approved by you. As details of the job come through we will pass the information along. There are many factors involved when producing a shoot, because numerous people are involved it all normally comes together quite late on in the schedule. So the time and location are normally finalised the day before.