Welcome to the latest edition of our South and Vale Business Support newsletter!


We are currently waiting for detailed guidance from UK Government regarding the new Discretionary Grant Fund Scheme, which is intended for businesses that were not eligible to claim the initial government COVID-19 grants for businesses.


What we do know is that we will be running it separately from the existing grants process, and we will set up a new system to carry this out.


It is worth noting that there are lessons that South Oxfordshire and Vale of White Horse District Councils have learned through distributing the Small Business Grant and the Expanded Retail Discount Grant, particularly in terms of communicating with applicants. We will ensure that we take these lessons into account in the new scheme.



We will keep you updated on progress with the new scheme via these newsletters and on our South and Vale Business Support website. Important updates will also be shared via our Facebook and Twitter accounts.

 


Businesses must be small, under 50 employees, and they must also be able to demonstrate that they have seen a significant drop of income due to Coronavirus restriction measures.



There will be three levels of grant payments. Grants of £10,000 will be available, and the maximum grant will be for £25,000. Local authorities will have discretion to make payments of any amount under £10,000. It will be for councils to adapt this approach to local circumstances.



Please remember NOT TO apply for this grant via the form on the district councils’ business rates pages, which are only for the
Small Business Grant Scheme and the Expanded Retail Discount Grant Scheme.


We will provide details on how to apply for the new discretionary grant scheme in due course.

Copyright © 2020 South Oxfordshire and Vale of White Horse District Councils, all rights reserved.

To find out more about how the council holds, uses and stores your personal data, please click on the appropriate council’s link:


South Oxfordshire District Council   | 
Vale of White Horse District Council