Small Businesses in Bromsgrove District Council have received over £13.4 million in funding, as part of the government’s response to Covid-19.
On March 17th, the Government launched the Small Business Grants Scheme, which is designed to back small businesses during the Covid-19 outbreak.
The scheme, which is supported by £12.3 billion in funding, is provided to local authorities, who are then able to offer grants of up to £10,000 to small businesses, and up to £25,000 for eligible leisure, retail and hospitality businesses.
According to the latest figures released on April 27th, over 900 businesses in Bromsgrove District have benefited from the government support so far – totalling over £13.4 million.
The Government is providing a huge and unprecedented package of support to help small businesses during the coronavirus outbreak, including:
- Helping to pay people’s wages through the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme, including for more than a million people who are employed by the 140,000 businesses which applied for the scheme in the first day alone.
- Introducing the Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme to provide loans of up to £5 million, interest free for 12 months, to small businesses.
- Taking all retail, leisure and hospitality businesses out of business rates altogether for the next year.
- Helping small and medium-sized businesses with the cost of paying Statutory Sick Pay for employees off because of Covid-19.
The Government have also recently announced an extension of the Small Business Grant Scheme. An additional £617 million will be provided to local authorities in England to provide top up grants to businesses who may have previously missed out.
This includes businesses who are not eligible under the current rules, with local councils provided the discretion to allocate the funding.
Commenting on the news, local MP, Sajid Javid said:
“The government is working flat out to back small businesses during this challenging time. It’s encouraging to see that over 1800 local businesses have benefited from this one scheme already”.
“By backing local businesses, the government is helping owners stand behind their employees”.
“The Government is determined to ensure that people get the support they need to do the right thing – to stay at home, protect our NHS and save lives”.
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