Extra advice on Covid support grants for Burnley businesses

Burnley Council is urging businesses to check the updated information about the latest various Government grants to see if they can access the support.

Businesses in the retail, leisure and hospitality sector that were required to close on either October 17th or 19th or November 5th are eligible for the Local Restriction Support Grant (Closed).

They may also be eligible for support back dated to August 5th under the Local Restrictions Support Grant (Open).

The council has now published the eligibility criteria for the Additional Restrictions Grant.

The ARG scheme seeks to support the following types of businesses:

- Businesses in the retail, hospitality and leisure sectors that are not eligible for the LRSG Open and Closed grants

- Businesses in the hospitality, leisure and events sectors supply chain that are not required to close but are significantly affected by the restrictions

- Small Independent essential retailers that are not required to close but are significantly affected by reductions in footfall and travel restrictions.

Initially it wasn’t clear but the council asked the Government for further clarification and it’s been confirmed that the grant is available to the local taxi trade, provided any applications meet the criteria.

The council acknowledges that there are other businesses that are affected by the restrictions but that are currently not eligible for a grant based on guidance provided by Government.

The scheme is subject to the publication of further guidance from Government and further changes may be required.

Similarly, further changes over future months may be required as different restrictions affect different parts of the economy.

Details on the additional restrictions and other support grants, and those businesses that could benefit from them, are available at www.burnley.gov.uk/business

The grant schemes are:

- Local Restrictions Support Grant (Closed) supporting businesses required to close on October 17th, October 19th and November 5th.

- Local Restrictions Support Grant (Open) supporting businesses that were not legally required to close but which were severely impacted by localised restrictions between August 5th and November 4th, prior to the National Restrictions being imposed.

- Local Restrictions Support Grant (Sector) supporting business to that have been subject to national closures since March 23rd.

- Additional Restrictions Grant (an additional restriction grant provided by councils for businesses outside of the above schemes). This is a scheme for other businesses affected by the pandemic.

Businesses are advised to read the criteria available, including exclusions, in respect of the grant schemes and if they feel they are eligible complete the online application which is available on the council's website.

Coun. Asif Raja, the council's executive member for economy and growth, said: "It’s vital that local businesses look at the latest Government grant support schemes to see if they could benefit from the extra help in these very difficult times.

“We’re pleased to have received further information about the Additional Restrictions Grant in particular, and we will continue to work to ensure that grant is targeted at the businesses where it will provide much-needed support.”