News & Events
3 new grants that could help you tackle the effects of COVID and Brexit?
28th September 2020
The last few months have been tough for us all but as we continue our recovery it is interesting to note the government has made a number of additional support grants available to help businesses deal both with the aftereffects of COVID and the potential impact of Brexit.
Covid 19 support – Professional Services Grant
From August 19th small and medium-sized businesses in England can apply for grants of between £1,000 and £5,000 to help them pay for the professional advice and new technology they’ll need to help them get back to where they were pre-COVID.
‘Professional advice’ of course includes accountants. From our own recent experience we have already seen just how much practical support we can offer in terms of maintaining cashflow, tightening up tax efficiencies and helping clients implement the temporary they’ll need to insulate their businesses over the next couple of months.
The £20m pot behind these grants has been provided by the England European Regional Development Fund but the physical management of the funds has been assigned to the 38 Local Enterprise Partnerships (LEPs). If you’d like to discuss making a claim for your business, please email us at jo@rowleys.biz and we can help you get the process started.
Covid 19 support – Lockdown Grant
This type of grant is aimed at helping businesses that have been affected by the ongoing local lockdowns. If you have been forced to shut down because of one of the newly imposed local lockdowns you may be able to claim for up to £1,500. It is an extension of the grants currently being made available in high risk areas like Blackburn, Darwen, Pendle, and Oldham.
According to the government’s guidelines:
- If your business occupies premises with a rateable value less than £51,000 or an annual rent or mortgage payment of less than £51,000, you will receive up to £1,500 for every three weeks you have to stay closed
- If your business has a rateable value more than £51,000 or an annual rent or mortgage payment of more than £51,000, you could receive a single payment of £1,500
- If your business is not on the business rates list, your local authority has an additional fund from which they can award discretionary grants of up to £1,500
It is expected that other criteria could be added as the scheme starts to take root.
If you have been affected by localised restrictions you would need to lodge your claim with your local authority. Again, if you feel you need some help, please email us at jo@rowleys.biz.
Preparing for Brexit Grant
The government has recently reopened a fund businesses can access to pay to train their staff in making customs declarations and looking at how things may change post Brexit.
You can apply for up to 100% of the cost of the training you need (up to a limit of £1,500 per trainee) if your business:
- Is either established in the UK or is the registered UK branch of your company
- Has no previous history of failing to meet your tax obligations
- Completes customs declarations for yourself or someone else (or will do in the future)
- Exports to or imports from the EU
If you feel you are eligible, there are a number of training providers you can consider but we’re here to help you identify which is the best for you and make your application for funding if you’d like us to.
It’s also important to note these three grants are only the three newest the government has launched. There are still others your business could be eligible for including the Kickstart Scheme, the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme, the new Job Support Scheme and the Self-Employed Income Support Scheme and the wide range of loans and tax reliefs the government has already made available.
We have also seen an increase in many businesses not able to get credit insurance on some international customers, as a result of Covid 19 and Brexit. If you want to discuss how best to fund international trade or look at how you bring goods in to the country effectively then get in touch. We work closely with a locally based international trade specialist who is already supporting local businesses.
If you would like to us to take a look at your current situation and make some initial recommendations as to which grants and schemes you could apply for, please call Jo Sharp on 0116 282 7000 or email jo@rowleys.biz and we can organise a review meeting