Further grant funding to support business

Grant funding to support businesses in the hospitality, retail and leisure sectors through until spring was announced as England went into lockdown until at least mid-February.

Who can claim the grants?

Grants are available for businesses which are located in England, operating in the retail, hospitality or leisure sectors and have been forced to close as a result of the 2021 national lockdown.

What can businesses apply for?

Eligible businesses can apply for a non-repayable one-off top up payment determined by their rateable value as set out below.

This one-off payment is in addition to the existing business support available including business rates relief, furlough scheme and Local Restriction Support Grants. Businesses who have benefitted from any of these schemes will not be precluded from applying for this new grant funding.

How to apply

While the details of the application process are not yet available, it appears that the funding will be distributed by individual local authorities, much like the Local Restriction Support Grants. Further information and guidance on the application process is expected to follow over the coming days.

What if your business is not eligible?

The government has also announced that a further £594m will be made available to local authorities and devolved administrations to support businesses not eligible for the new grant funding.

As business support is a matter of devolved policy, subsequent grants are expected to be announced by each of the devolved administrations for businesses located in those areas of the UK. The government has announced that it will be making the following funds available for this purpose:

• £375m allocated to the Scottish Government
• £227m allocated to the Welsh Government
• £127m allocated to the Northern Ireland Executive.

What next?

We anticipate that further detail on eligibility and application processes will be made available over the coming days by each local authority on an individual basis. If you intend to apply, please refer to your local authority’s website.

For further information on the range Covid-19 Government supported funding currently available, please see refer to our comprehensive summary which can be accessed here.