FInancial Support
December 2021 Business Support Update
Key details of financial support offered to businesses in the hospitality and leisure sectors in England, who are eligible for one-off grants of up to £6,000 per premises
Other struggling businesses outside leisure and hospitality can apply to local councils for a different grant under the Additional Restrictions Grant, which will be topped up with £102m nationally
The Statutory Sick Pay Rebate Scheme is being reintroduced, meaning business with fewer than 250 employees can claim money to cover sick pay for employees who are affected by Covid
An extra £30m for arts organisations through the existing Culture Recovery Fund.
COVID-19 Additional Relief Fund (CARF) to provide discretionary rate relief for businesses impacted by the pandemic but ineligible for the Expanded Rate Relief scheme this year.
The Council will be administering the hospitality and leisure grants. So far the Council does not have further information on the schemes, how much or when they will receive the money.
Camden’s CARF allocation is £39.7m, aimed at providing relief against business rate liability for the 2021-2022 financial year for those businesses who have been adversely affected by the pandemic and are ineligible for the expanded retail relief scheme announced earlier in the year. This will not be grants issues to businesses but rather a reduction in the business rate bills.
January 2021 Lockdown Update
As of 5th January 2021, national lockdown restrictions have been imposed. This requires all non-essential businesses to close - find out more information on this by visiting the government website.
The Chancellor has announced extra financial support for businesses, which includes:
One-off top up grants for retail, hospitality and leisure businesses worth up to £9,000 per property
£594 million discretionary fund also made available to support other impacted businesses, allocated by local councils
These are in addition to £1.1 billion discretionary grant funding for Local Authorities, Local Restriction Support Grants worth up to £3,000 a month and the extension of the furlough scheme
We are awaiting further information from Camden Council on the new round of discretionary grant funding, including who will be eligible, how it will be distributed and when it will become available.
The Council are keeping an updated webpage of information regarding local financial support - please stay informed. This includes Local Restrictions Support Grants (below), which you should have previously been contacted about if eligible. If your business did not receive a payment by the end of Thursday 26th November and you meet the criteria, please fill out an application at https://www.camden.gov.uk/business-support-grants. The LRSG is continuing throughout January, and you should receive further payments.
Businesses can contact businessgrants@camden.gov.uk to ask any direct questions.
Please make sure you are fully aware of financial support that is currently available to you. The coronavirus financial support finder is a particularly handy tool to find out what financial aid may be on offer to your business.
November 2020 Lockdown Update
As of Thursday 5 November the UK has officially been placed back into national lockdown restrictions. For now, these restrictions are expected to be in place until Wednesday 2 December, but this is up for review. The Government has announced an updated financial support package to support businesses through this.
Local Restrictions Support Grants
Businesses required to close under the new lockdown restrictions will be eligible to apply for the following from 5 November - 2 December:
Properties with a rateable value of £15,000 or under would receive a grant of £1,334.
Properties with a rateable value of between £15,000 and £51,000 would receive a grant of £2,000.
Properties with a rateable value over £51,000 would receive a grant of £3,000.
You will be able to apply for these grants through Camden Council, who are currently awaiting more information. They’re hoping to know more by mid-November. Sign up to their Camden business e-newsletter to receive the latest announcements.
Extension to the furlough scheme
The Chancellor has announced that the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS) has been extended until March 2021. This means that furloughed employees will receive 80% of their usual salary for hours not worked (up to £2,500 per month), for the next five months. Find out more at gov.uk/government/news/government-extends-furlough-to-march-and-increases-self-employed-support
Autumn and Winter 2020 Update
This below outlines the most up-to-date information regarding financial support available to businesses, alongside the latest rules and regulations. We know there still remains an element of confusion and uncertainty for everyone, but hope that we can continue to work together to support our much-loved town and high street. Please get in touch if you have any questions – we will do our best to help!
BUSINESS SUPPORT
Businesses are protected from the threat of eviction until the end of 2020 – read more here.
From 1st November, the government are introducing the new Job Support Scheme. Employees will need to work a minimum of 33% of their usual hours. For every hour not worked, the employer and the government will each pay one third of the employee’s usual rate – meaning employees using the scheme will receive at least 77% of their pay. The scheme will run for six months, and large businesses will be required to demonstrate that their business has been adversely affected by covid-19. Government contribution is capped at £697.92 per month. Visit the website for more information.
The temporary reduced rate of VAT has been extended until 31 March 2021. This will continue to apply to supplies of food and non-alcoholic drinks from restaurants, pubs, bars, cafés and similar premises, supplies of accommodation and admission to attractions across the UK.
Access to Bounce Back Loans, Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan, Coronavirus Large Business Interruption Loan and the Future Fund have been extended until 30 November for new applications. Find out more about each individual scheme by clicking on them.
The government will give all businesses that borrowed under the Bounce Back Loan the option to repay their loan over a period of up to ten years.
Businesses who deferred their VAT will no longer have to pay a lump sum at the end of March next year. They will have the option of splitting it into smaller, interest free payments over the course of 11 months.
Use this business support finder to understand what support is available to you and your business.
See here for the latest Covid-secure rules and regulations.
Pay it Forward
The Mayor of London is offering a free platform to help businesses to pre-sell vouchers, goods and services.
