Showmen should contact their local authority about these now.
- The government are providing additional funding to allow Local Authorities (LAs) to support businesses in high-alert level areas which are not legally closed, but which are severely impacted by the restrictions on socialising…
- The funding Local Authorities will receive will be based on the number of hospitality, hotel, B&B, and leisure businesses in their area.
It could include Showmen… read on…
- Local Authorities will receive a funding amount that will be the equivalent of:
- For properties with a rateable value of £15,000 or under, grants of £934 per month.
- For properties with a rateable value over £15,000 and below £51,000, grants of £1,400 per month.
- For properties with a rateable value of exactly £51,000 and over, grants of £2,100 per month.
- This is equivalent to 70% of the grant amounts given to legally closed businesses (worth up to £3,000/month).
- Local Authorities will also receive a 5% top-up amount to these“implied grant amounts” to cover other businesses that might be affected by the local restrictions, but which may not be in the business rates system.
- It will be up to Local Authorities to determine what precise funding to allocate to each business
- amounts”to cover other businesses that might be affected by the local restrictions, but which do not neatly fit into these categories.
This could include Showmen – The Showmen’s Guild is working on getting
“Showmen” mentioned in the Guidance to LAs…
- The Government says, “It will be up to Local Authorities to determine which businesses are eligible for grant funding in their local areas, and what precise funding to allocate to each business – the above levels are an approximate guide.”
This is what the Showmen’s Guild are clarifying with the BEIS
(Business Dept) in Govt… (as of 23rd October2020)
The Showmen’s Guild has written to Sir David Amess, Chair of the All Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Fairs and Showgrounds on Fri. 23.10.20 – to get his and the Group’s MPs’ to lobby the Business (BEIS) Dept. to get the category “Showmen” mentioned on the official Guidance (where they mention that there can be grants to those who don’t pay business rates – that’s many showmen… that they send to Local Authorities in using their (LAs’ ) discretion in awarding grants – so that Showmen are not left out – again… – Fingers-crossed everyone ..
Businesses in Very High alert level areas:The government says:
- They “will qualify for greater support whether closed (up to £3,000/month) or open.”
- “If open, support is being provided through business support packages provided to Local Authorities as they move into the alert level.”
- The government “is working with local leaders to ensure the Alert Level very high
packages are fair and transparent.”
Details from the government page online are here:https://www.gov.uk/government/news/plan-for-jobs-chancellor-increases-financial-support-for-businesses-and-workers
The Chancellor’s Local Restrictions Support Grant (Tier 2):
What is the scheme?
We are providing additional funding to allow local authorities to support businesses in Tier 2 areas which are not legally closed, but which are severely impacted by the restrictions on socialising. The funding local authorities will receive will be based on the number of hospitality, hotel, B&B, and leisure businesses in their area, and will assume that these businesses receive grants equivalent to 70% of the grants for which legally closed businesses are eligible.
This would be equivalent to:
- For properties with an RV of £15k or under, grants of £934 per month
- For properties with an RV of between £15k-£51k, grants of £1,400 per month
- For properties with an RV of £51k, grants of £2,100 per month .
It will be up to Local Authorities to determine what precise funding to allocate to each business – the above levels are only an approximate guide.
Local authorities will also receive a 5% top up amount to these implied grant amounts to cover other businesses that might be affected by the local restrictions, but which may not be in the business rates system.
This scheme will initially run until April, with a review point in January.
Who is eligible?
Local authorities have the freedom to determine the precise eligibility criteria for these grants in their local areas. The guiding principle for local authorities is to use the funding to support businesses which have not been legally required to close, but which are nonetheless severely impacted by reduced demand caused by Tier 2 restrictions on socialising. How can businesses access the grants? Grants will be administered by Local Authorities, and businesses are likely to need to apply to their local authority for support. It is up to local authorities to determine the payment schedule and timings for these grants.
What can businesses use the grants for?
Businesses can choose to spend the grants as they wish. We expect that many businesses will use the grants to cover high fixed property-related costs.
What about areas which have been living under Tier 2-equivalent restrictions for several months already? Will you help them?
Some areas have been subject to restrictions on socialising for several months, before the tiering system was introduced. Funding for these areas will be backdated until the point at which these restrictions began.
Details online here: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/928760/BUSINESS_GRANTS_FACTSHEET.pdf
