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Welcome to the NAG and SOPO newsletter for 7 August 2020. Feel free to circulate to your colleagues.
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Previous bulletins can now be found here.
Small Business Grants Fund
On 23 July, the Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy (BEIS) wrote to billing authorities alerting them to the Government’s decision to close the Small Business Grants Fund, the Retail, Hospitality and Leisure Business Grants Fund and the Discretionary Grants Fund on 28 August. On 31 July BEIS wrote to billing authorities extending the deadline for the payments via the discretionary fund to 30 September. Applications for this fund should be received by 28 August. Outstanding issues at the end of September will be dealt with as part of a reconciliation process, details of which will be available at a later date.
LGA analysis published this week has revealed that local businesses could miss out on more than £1 billion of emergency COVID-19 funding due to the end of the business grant schemes. We know that you have worked hard to distribute almost £11 billion to almost 880,000 eligible small businesses through the funds since March. We are calling for the discretionary scheme to be kept open and for the redistribution of any underspends from the other two schemes back to councils to support businesses and local economies.
Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme
The latest Advisory Bulletin employment law update contains information on the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme Bonus and clarification on the use of the scheme to pay notice pay and redundancy payments. Our webpage on the scheme has been updated to reflect those changes. The bulletin also includes commentary on the Government’s response to its 2019 consultation on a cap on public sector exit payments.
Personal protective equipment
The guidance for health providers on how to order emergency personal protective equipment has been updated to reflect that pharmacies and medium sized social care providers can order from the portal. The number of visors that can be ordered via the portal has also changed.
Schools
The DfE has developed extensive guidance for all settings across the education, childcare and children’s social care sectors on how to respond to coronavirus (Covid-19). This includes guidance on the use of and access to Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) and cleaning products as part of a system of controls for preventing the spread of the virus – see safe working in education, childcare and children’s social care settings guidance.
This note provides information to support settings with their responsibility to source their own PPE and cleaning products. It explains various sourcing options available in addition to those which may already be in place. As set out in the guidance, if education or childcare settings cannot obtain the PPE they need they should approach their local authority (LA). If children's homes, secure children's homes, residential special schools, or other children's social care settings have an unmet urgent need for PPE in order to operate safely, they should approach their local resilience forum (LRF).
Non-COVID stories
Four Seasons Healthcare
We have been contacted by Four Seasons Healthcare (FSHC) Group to notify us of a change to their business. As you will be aware, for some time the FSHC Group has been restructuring and they have confirmed that a substantial proportion of their leasehold estate has now transitioned to alternative providers. In order to facilitate the broader restructuring of the Group and, in their view, to best preserve continuity of care across their ongoing operations, they have taken the decision to place two holding companies within the group into administration. The two holding companies affected are Four Seasons Health Care Group Limited and Four Seasons Health Care Limited.
FSHC Group inform us that these holding companies sit above, and are distinct from, the operating companies under which the Group’s care homes, hospitals and specialist care centres sit. FSHC Group has stated that neither company provides services to residents or patients and as such, the administrations will not impact on the day to day delivery of care in homes and hospitals, nor will they affect any suppliers that support the Group's operations, or indeed any of the team members within the group. FSHC Group has confirmed to us and other stakeholders that this move continues the process of simplifying the Group's structure.
FSHC Group has said that they, and the administrators, will continue to work closely with all the relevant regulatory authorities and all relevant national commissioning bodies – including the Department of Health and Social Care and NHS England – and have committed to continuing to keep all key stakeholders updated.
Construction
The Industry Safety Steering Group led by Dame Judith Hackitt has this week published its annual report about progress on culture change in the construction sector.
ShopLocal week next week
Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) is running a #ShopLocal week next week, as part of its #EnjoySummerSafely campaign. The week is to celebrate the British high street – encouraging customers to come back to their safe local shops, supporting the local economy and local jobs.
Local businesses are encouraged to look out for content on BEIS social media channels. BEIS will also be watching out for the best digital content from local businesses using #ShopLocal, and will look to amplify it. Councils are invited to share the toolkit with local businesses in their area which is available here. https://bit.ly/3keif38
Insurance
Crown Commercial Service have issued a White Paper on Insurance which seeks to unpack the processes and considerations around procuring and arranging the right insurance, as well as offering tips to ensure you achieve best value for your organisation and its stakeholders. You can download this paper from www.crowncommercial.gov.uk/whitepaper/request/23602/prepare-to-save-how-advance-planning-can-achieve-best-value
If you are interested in learning more about the Local Government Mutual see www.local.gov.uk/local-government-mutual.
Webinars / e-learning
PBA Masterclass Webinar Wednesday 19 August 2020, 10:30-12:00
The LGA is working with the Cabinet Office Fair Payment Working Group to promote prompt payment and is hosting a webinar on Project Bank Accounts (PBAs) on Wednesday 19 August at 10.30am
Join the webinar and learn about PBAs and how they can be used to deliver central government and local authority construction projects. It will be an opportunity to hear from people across government that use PBAs and put your questions to them, and dispel some of the myths that surround PBAs. There will also be case studies to demonstrate the benefits of using PBAs on both small and large construction projects. To register for the webinar, follow this link to the booking page https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/pba-masterclass-webinar-tickets-116102015253
Any questions please contact Georgia.rudin@local.gov.uk.
Procurex National Engage – 9 September 2020 (Online)
An ongoing theme in today’s public sector marketplace is the need to realise improved value for money through ‘smarter’ procurement. Procurex National 2020 is designed specifically to help both buyer and supplier communities to meet the efficiency challenges of today and tomorrow, in addition to enhancing overall skills and capabilities. Find out more on the Procurex National Engage 2020 website.
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