Chancellor of the Exchequer's statement 5 January 2021: Additional Business Support Grants

The Chancellor has announced one-off top up grants for retail, hospitality and leisure businesses. They are worth £4,000-9,000 per property to help businesses through to the Spring.

These grants are in addition to previously announced Local Restriction Support Grants worth up to £3,000 a month and the extended furlough scheme.

The one-off top-ups will be granted to closed businesses as follows:

• £4,000 for businesses with a rateable value of £15,000 or under (which will be most in Sandgate to be honest)
• £6,000 for businesses with a rateable value between £15,000 and £51,000
• £9,000 for businesses with a rateable value of over £51,000

These seem to be straightforward grants, not loans.

These grants will be paid via District Councils, but until Government provide the detailed rules of these top-up grants to Councils then there may be a wait until applications open.

Businesses should watch https://www.folkestone-hythe.gov.uk/covid-19/business-support for more details of grants and how to apply (if required) as they "go live". I'll also update here as I learn more.