More small businesses in the Scarborough borough can apply for a support grant of upto £10,000 in the Covid-19 crisis

Scarborough Borough Council launched the first round of its Discretionary Business Grant Scheme last month.

Out of the £3.23m of government funding allocated to the scheme, the council has paid grants to 185 businesses with a total value of £1.95m.

In particular, struggling businesses in the tourism, hospitality and leisure sectors, which slipped through the net of the government’s original grant schemes, have been helped, including visitor accommodation, attractions and suppliers.

For the second round of the scheme, the eligibility criteria has been relaxed to include all small and micro businesses with fixed property costs in the borough, not just the specific business types included previously.

The criteria has also been expanded to pay grants where people have more than one business and they have not received one of the government’s original small business or retail, hospitality and leisure grants for that additional business, provided that the total already received does not exceed £50,000.

Just over £1.2m remains in the pot so the council is inviting businesses that have not previously applied for a discretionary grant, to submit an application now, irrespective of their business type.

The grants will be awarded in three bands, up to £2,000, up to £5,000 and up to £10,000 and will vary dependent on factors such as business size, levels of fixed property costs payable, and the financial impact coronavirus has had on the business.

The scheme does allow for grants of up to £25,000 in exceptional circumstances.

Applications must be made online via the support for businesses section at scarborough.gov.uk/coronavirus by the deadline of Monday July 20 where the eligibility criteria can also be found.

Applicants must be registered with HMRC or the Charities Commission and either have their sole or main residence in the borough and be liable for council tax, or operate from a business premise within the borough that is subject to non-domestic rating.

After the closing date, the applications will be assessed to determine levels of grants payable.

Cllr Janet Jefferson, Scarborough Council cabinet member for Corporate Resources said: “It’s been really encouraging to hear the positive difference we’ve made to those businesses that received funding from us in the first round of the scheme.

”I would like to thank the officers who have worked tirelessly to award the grants and help as many business owners as they can.

“With more than one million pounds still to award and a relaxation of the application criteria, we are now in a position to help more of our borough’s small businesses mitigate some of the impact of the coronavirus pandemic.”

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