Coronavirus Business Advice for Local Businesses

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Plymouth business news

18th March 2020


Coronavirus (COVID-19) Business Support

Yesterday the Chancellor announced the latest measures of support in relation to COVID-19. Please find below an overview of the support measures brought forward by the Government.

  • A £330bn package of support has been outlined which will be delivered through two main schemes due to be up and running w/c 23 March 2020:
    • A new lending facility with the Bank of England to support liquidity in larger firms to provide low cost, easily accessible commercial paper
    • an extension to the new Business Interruption Loan scheme for small and medium sized businesses, providing loans of up to £5million with no interest for the first six months
  • All retail, hospitality and leisure businesses in England will receive a 100% business rates holiday for the next 12 months
  • An increase in grants to small businesses eligible for Small Business Rate Relief from £3,000 to £10,000
  • Further £25,000 grants will be available for retail, hospitality and leisure businesses operating from smaller premises, with a rateable value over £15,000 and below £51,000
  • Confirmation that government advice to avoid pubs, clubs and theatres is sufficient for businesses to claim on their insurance where they have appropriate business interruption cover for pandemics in place

Read the Chancellor's speech in full here

Accessing these support measures:

At this time Plymouth City Council is awaiting guidance from central government on how these support measures can be accessed. We have asked and as soon as more information is available we will tell businesses. This is high priority and we know that this is extremely important.

Our COVID-19 business support page on the Invest Plymouth website is being regularly updated with the latest advice and information and now includes sector specific pages with signposting to the latest industry guidance.


How to work remotely

Cosmic, a Devon based social enterprise has created a toolkit for remote working. If your business is having to work remotely for the first time the guide provides an overview of guidance for best practice and steps to set up strong systems and processes to enable you and your colleagues to succeed.

View the toolkit here


Crowdfunder: Pay it Forward initiative

Crowdfunder has introduced a new campaign to support British and South West businesses affected by this pandemic. The Pay it Forward campaign offers 100% free fundraising for businesses along with support from Enterprise Nation.

The platform provides the opportunity for businesses to sell vouchers, good and services in advance.

Find out more about the campaign here


LinkedIn

Did you know we are on Linkedin? Join us here for more regular updates.


InvestPlymouth

Keep up to date with news and advice on our COVID-19 business support page 

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