Businesses required to close due to the national restrictions which started on 5 November 2020, may be eligible for a grant.
- Eligible businesses will receive a one-off grant to support them during the four-week closure and help them with the ongoing challenges presented by coronavirus.
- Businesses that were open as usual and were then required to close due to local restrictions (local COVID alert level: Very High) may be eligible for LRSG (Closed).
- Eligible businesses are entitled to a cash grant from their local council for each 14 day period they are closed.
Eligibility
Your business may be eligible if it:
- is based in England
- occupies property on which it pays business rates (and is the ratepayer)
- is in an area of local restrictions and has been required to close because of local restrictions that resulted in a first full day of closure on or after 9 September
- has been required to close for at least 14 days because of the restrictions
- has been unable to provide its usual in-person customer service from its premises
For example, this could include non-essential retail and personal services that operate primarily as an in-person venue, but which have been forced to close those services and provide a takeaway-only service instead.
Eligible businesses can get one grant for each non-domestic property within the restriction area.
The precise set of businesses eligible for the scheme may vary between each local council area under local restrictions in recognition of the specific conditions in each area.
Businesses excluded from the fund
You cannot get funding if:
- you can continue to operate during the period of restrictions because you do not depend on providing direct in-person services from your premises (for example, accountants)
- local restrictions are introduced for less than 14 days or you are closed for less than 14 days
- you have chosen to close, but have not been required to close as part of local restrictions
- your businesses has been subject to national closures, since 23 March 2020, such as nightclubs (these are eligible for other grant support)
- you have exceeded the permitted state aid threshold
You must notify your local council if your situation changes and you no longer meet the eligibility criteria.
If you already get state aid
LRSG (Closed) counts towards the total de minimis state aid you’re allowed to get over a 3 year period – €200,000.
If you have reached the de minimis threshold, you may still be eligible for funding under the COVID-19 Temporary Framework. The limit for this framework is €800,000.
Your local council will ask you to complete a declaration confirming that:
- you will not exceed the relevant state aid threshold
- you were not an ‘undertaking in difficulty’ on 31 December 2019 (this applies to the temporary framework only)
The undertaking in difficulty test does not apply to small and micro undertakings (less than 50 employees and less than €10 million of annual turnover or annual balance sheet), unless any of the following apply:
- the business is already in insolvency proceedings
- the business has received rescue aid that has not been repaid
- the business is subject to a restructuring plan under state aid rules
What you get
The grant will be based on the rateable value of the property on the first full day of local restrictions.
- If your business has a property with a rateable value of £15,000 or less, you may be eligible for a cash grant of £667 for each 14 day period your business is closed.
- If your business has a property with a rateable value over £15,000 and less than £51,000, you may be eligible for a cash grant of £1,000 for each 14 day period your business is closed.
- If your business has a property with a rateable value of £51,000 or above, you may be eligible for a cash grant of £1,500 for each 14 day period your business is closed.
The grant will be extended to cover each additional 14-day period of closure. If your business is closed for 28-days, or 2 payment cycles, it will receive £1,334, £2,000 or £3,000, depending on the rateable value of the property.
How to apply
Visit your local council’s website to find out how to apply.