Watford Borough Council is encouraging local businesses to check whether they are eligible for a new government funding pot designed to help businesses impacted by COVID-19.
Eligible businesses for the new Local Restrictions Support Grant, are those that are required to close due to temporary COVID-19 local or national lockdown restrictions imposed by the by government and include non-essential retail, leisure, personal care, sports facilities and hospitality businesses.
A single grant will be paid to each eligible business and the amounts will be fixed. You can find out if you are eligible at watford.gov.uk/businessgrants.
The rate of payment for eligible businesses will be as follows, businesses with a rateable value of:
- Exactly £15,000 or under, will receive £1,334 per month, or £667 per two weeks.
- More than £15,000 and less than £51,000, will receive £2,000 per month, or £1,000 per two weeks.
- Exactly £51,000 or above, will receive £3,000 per month, or £1,500 per two weeks.
For November 5 to December 2, a 28-day payment cycle will be applied.
If the national restrictions continue past 2 December or if Watford is placed in Local Covid Alert Level (LCAL) 3 further payments under the Local Restrictions Support Grant may be due.
To further support businesses, the council have also partnered with not-for-profit and social enterprise Wenta, to launch a free business support programme tailored to the needs of local businesses and residents across Watford.
The programme provides free of charge services including one-to-one business advice, skills training webinars and workshops, access to co-working, incubation space for small businesses and specialist support. For more information, visit watfordbusiness.com/recovery.
Elected Mayor of Watford Peter Taylor commented “Our small businesses are the lifeblood of Watford’s economy, providing thousands of jobs for local people and making a vital contribution to the success of our town.
“We know how difficult businesses are finding the second lockdown and restrictions imposed, so I would urge anyone who thinks they meet the criteria to apply for this funding. Our team will be working flat out to process applications and to make decisions quickly so the money gets to local businesses”.
To apply for the Government’s Local Restrictions Support Grant, businesses can visit the council’s website at watford.gov.uk/businessgrants.
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