·       £1000 for wet-led pubs trading under Tier restrictions over Christmas – still open for claims in January 2021

The Christmas Support Payment for wet-led pubs supports pubs that predominantly serve alcohol rather than provide food and have been severely impacted over the festive season due to temporary local restrictions.

Eligible businesses may be entitled to a one-off cash grant of £1,000 from their local council if they were trading under Tier 2 or 3 local restrictions over the Christmas period.

If you have not accessed this funding yet, please contact your local council. If eligible you can make a retrospective claim up until 20 January 2021. Link – https://www.gov.uk/guidance/check-if-youre-eligible-for-the-christmas-support-payment-for-wet-led-pubs

• £9,000 lockdown support grant for businesses in retail, hospitality and leisure sectors

One-off, top-up grants for retail, hospitality and leisure businesses that are legally required to close as a result of the lockdown are eligible for funding worth up to £9,000 per property. This is on top of any other financial support you have accessed in response to the Covid crisis.

The grants will be administered by your local authority, linked to the rateable value of your premises. Further detail of application processes etc is expected next week (11 January) – Plunkett will share updates as soon as they are available alternatively please keep in touch with your local authority for local updates relevant to your business.

For information the one-off, top-ups will be granted to closed businesses as follows:

• £4,000 for businesses with a rateable value of £15,000 or under
• £6,000 for businesses with a rateable value between £15,000 and £51,000
• £9,000 for businesses with a rateable value of over £51,000

More information can be found here – https://www.gov.uk/government/news/46-billion-in-new-lockdown-grants-to-support-businesses-and-protect-jobs

Localised Restrictions Support Scheme

Eligibility for the Localised Restrictions Support Scheme is directly linked to the Health Protection Regulations in place in Norther Ireland.

There are three levels of support available to eligible businesses. The level of support that successful applicants will receive is based on the Total Net Annual Value (NAV) of the property from which the business operates:

• Lower rate: £800 for each week that the restrictions apply for:
  • • a business that is the sole occupant operating from a property with an NAV of £15,000 or less,
    • a guesthouse or bed & breakfast with a capital value (which means it is valued as a domestic property for rates); or
    • a business that is the occupier of a part of a property which is restricted with any NAV.
• Standard rate: £1,200 for each week that the restrictions apply for:
  • • a business that is the sole occupant of a property with an NAV between £15,001 and £51,000.
• Higher rate: £1,600 for each week that restrictions apply for:
  • • A business that is the sole occupant of a property with an NAV of £51,001 or more.

Applications may take up to 5 weeks to assess but payments should be issued within 7 working days once approved. More information about this scheme, including clarity on the Health Protection Restrictions, eligibility criteria and the application process can be found via this link https://www.nibusinessinfo.co.uk/content/coronavirus-localised-restrictions-support-scheme

Strategic Framework Business Fund

Businesses in Scotland required to close by law or to significantly change its operations due to COVID-19 restrictions, may be eligible to apply for grant funding from this fund.

Payments are made in arrears, but businesses that are fully closed can claim for grants of up to:

• £2,000 if your business premises has a rateable value of up to and including £51,000
• £3,000 if your business premises has a rateable value of £51,001 or above

For businesses able to remain open but with significant modifications to its operations can claim for grants of up to:

• £1,400 if your business premises has a rateable value of up to and including £51,000
• £2,100 if your business premises has a rateable value of £51,001 or above

Applications need to be submitted via your local authority and more information can be found here – https://findbusinesssupport.gov.scot/service/funding/strategic-framework-business-fund

COVID-19 Economic Resilience Fund (ERF) Sector Specific Grant

The ERF Sector Specific Support (operating cost) package is targeted at hospitality, tourism and leisure businesses and associated supply chain businesses that will be materially impacted by a greater than 60% impact of turnover as a result of the restrictions introduced on 4 December 2020 until the 22 January 2021.

The funds seeks to compliment other COVID-19 response measures to support businesses, social enterprises and charitable organisations in Wales.

This link (https://fundchecker.businesswales.gov.wales/sectorspecificgrant/) will take you to an eligibility checker. The fund is expected to open to applications week commencing 11 January 2021.

ERF Restrictions Business Fund

To support businesses affected by the current restrictions, since Christmas Eve in Wales, the Welsh Government have added a further £110m of financial support to their ERF Restrictions Business Fund for businesses affected by these restrictions.

Hospitality, non-essential retail, tourism, leisure and supply chain businesses will be eligible for financial assistance. This link provides further information (https://businesswales.gov.wales/coronavirus-advice/erf-restrictions-business-fund)

Bounce Back Loan (still open to applications until 31 March 2021)

The scheme helps small and medium-sized businesses to borrow between £2,000 and up to 25% of their turnover. The maximum loan available is £50,000.

The Government guarantees 100% of the loan and there won’t be any fees or interest to pay for the first 12 months. After 12 months the interest rate will be 2.5% a year.

The scheme is open to applications until 31 March 2021. More via this link – https://www.gov.uk/guidance/apply-for-a-coronavirus-bounce-back-loan

Job Retention Scheme (extended until 30 April 2021)

For businesses unable to maintain their workforce because of restrictions placed on their operations, the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme has been extended until 30 April 2021. Businesses can claim 80% of an employee’s usual salary for hours not worked, up to a maximum of £2,500 per month

More via this link – https://www.gov.uk/guidance/claim-for-wage-costs-through-the-coronavirus-job-retention-scheme

We are continuing to work with a number of partners, such as Power to Change, Co-operatives UK and Locality, as well as the Association of Convenience Stores and the British Beer and Pub Association to make sure that your group can access a wide range of expertise as quickly as possible. Re-visit our website, Facebook or Twitter pages for up-to-date information.