Business and Economy

Small or Micro businesses across Sefton in the Hospitality, Leisure and Accommodation sectors have until 5pm on Monday 7th February to apply for the latest round of the Government’s Additional Restrictions Grant payments (ARG3).

ARG3 is designed to support businesses severely impacted by the rise of the Omicron variant which are not eligible for the Omicron Hospitality and Leisure Grant (OHLG).

First come first served

Sefton Council’s has been allocated £336,185, which will be allocated on a first come first served basis to eligible businesses most in need.

Under the Companies Act 2006, small businesses are defined as meeting at least two of the following criteria, a turn-over of not more than £10.2 million, a balance sheet total not greater than £5.1 million or a maximum of 50 employees.

The two or more criteria Micro businesses must meet are a turnover, not more than £632,000, a balance sheet not above £316,000 or a staff headcount exceeding 10.

Up to £3,000

Home-based businesses will receive up to £1,000 and those in a commercial property, up to £3,000.

Information on how to apply and the link to make an application is here.

Applications will close at 5pm on Monday 7th February.

Outstrip

Cllr Marion Atkinson, Sefton Council’s Cabinet Member for Regeneration and Skills, said: “We have been allocated £336,185 for this round of Government funding and we know through evidence and our ongoing conversations with Sefton businesses this simply isn’t enough. We expect demand to outstrip this amount so I would encourage eligible small and micro businesses across the Borough to apply as soon as possible.”

Limited time and funds

Cllr Paulette Lappin, Sefton Council’s Cabinet Member for Regulatory, Compliance and Corporate Services said: “Because of the limited time and funds available, the Council will be assessing applications in the order in which they are received, but any that do not have the required information or evidence will be rejected so I would advise applicants to read the information carefully.”

Find out how to apply and make an application here.

Rate-paying Sefton business in the in the hospitality and leisure sectors to apply for the next round of the Government’s Omicron Hospitality and Leisure Grant scheme.

Businesses in Sefton are being invited to apply to the new Help to Grow digital scheme, through which they can discounts of up to £5,000 on Digital Accounting and Customer Relationship Management (CRM) software.

Help to Grow aims to help small and medium sized businesses (SMEs) adopt digital technologies that will will help them manage their finances effectively and build customer relationships.

Eligible

To be eligible for the Help to Grow scheme, businesses need to:

• have between 5 and 249 employees;
• be a UK company registered with Companies House or on the Financial Conduct Authority’s Mutuals Register;
• be incorporated and actively trading for over a year before they apply;
• be purchasing the software for the first time.

More information about the scheme is available on the Help to Grow website.

Increase productivity

Businesses visiting the site can also find free and impartial advice on how technology can help increase productivity across all sectors including:

• guidance and tools to help them understand which digital technology is best suited to your business;
• a software comparison tool
• an application process for a financial discount on approved software if they are eligible (up to £5,000)
• checklists to help them assess whether they are ready and how to integrate new software
• case studies about similar businesses.

Find out more at www.learn-to-grow-your-business.service.gov.uk

Sefton Council is urging local business rates payers in the in the hospitality and leisure sectors to apply for the next round of the Government’s Omicron Hospitality and Leisure Grant scheme.

More information about the scheme and how to apply is available here, and applications are open until Monday 14th February.

Reduced trade

Businesses that have experienced reduced trade owing to the spread of the Omicron COVID-19 variant because they are in the hospitality, leisure and accommodation sectors can apply to the scheme.

But because of the Government’ requirements applications need to be submitted by Monday 14^th February.

Businesses that think they may be eligible are urged to read the guidance on the website before applying.

Tight deadline

Cllr Paulette Lappin, Sefton Council’s Cabinet Member for Regulatory, Compliance and Corporate Services said: “We are encouraging any businesses planning on making applications to get them in as quickly as possible and to make sure they supply all the information that’s required.

“This is because the Government’s Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy has set a tight, end-of-February deadline for the Council to assess applications and agree payments and we want all local businesses eligible for a grant to get paid.”

Challenges

Cllr Marion Atkinson, Sefton Council’s Cabinet Member for Regeneration and Skills, said: “Sefton Council has recognised that businesses across the Borough have face enormous challenges throughout the pandemic and I am pleased that we have been able to process over 23,000 grant payments totalling over £97 million in payments to help support them, with a further £1.3 million in the pipeline.

“And now with this new round of funding in the form of the Omicron Hospitality and Leisure Grant, I hope we are going to be able to help even more but to help us process their applications, we do need businesses to apply without delay and to look out for any further grant announcements that are made.”

Small or Micro businesses across Sefton in the Hospitality, Leisure and Accommodation sectors have until 5pm on Monday 7th February to apply for the latest round of the Government’s Additional Restrictions Grant payments (ARG3).

Sefton Council leader, Cllr Ian Maher and the City Region’s other political leaders have written an open letter to Rishi Sunak, Chancellor of the Exchequer, calling upon him to bring in a package of support measures for businesses affected by the growth of the Omicron variant.

The full text of the letter is here:

Dear Rishi,

We write to you deeply concerned, not only with the health implications of the Omicron variant, but its potential economic detriment too. The high transmissibility makes it especially dangerous and, while we support restrictions to help slow that spread, we feel the situation is something of a halfway house. The restrictions – and your government’s own advice – mean people are staying home, while the lack of financial support means that businesses up and down the country are forced to pay the price.

The Liverpool City Region’s visitor economy is especially susceptible to these impacts. It is worth an estimated £4.9bn per year, with 4,300 businesses employing nearly 50,000 people. It is through a combination of local and national interventions that these businesses have survived the past 18 months – including investment of more than £44m of local funding which supported over 4,000 city region businesses.

As you will know, uncertainty can be fatal for businesses big or small. The current situation means that many local shops, bars and restaurants are heading into the Christmas period, the busiest and most profitable time of the year for many, facing uncertainty on all sides, ranging from staff shortages and late cancellations, to ordering stock when potential future restrictions are unclear. This, in turn, has knock on effects for other trades, like our region’s service industries and taxi drivers.

The confusion sown by asking people to “think carefully” about their actions while allowing hospitality to stay open is proving damaging to many businesses. People are rightly worried about the threat of Omicron, which is in turn leading to high numbers of cancellations and significant losses in expected earnings with nothing to cover the shortfalls.

Hospitality staff across the country, a great number of whom work unsecure hours and are among the lowest paid, have had many thousands of hours of shifts cut as a result. Even those not hit by cancellations find themselves struggling to find enough staff to open thanks to rapid transmission of this new variant.

We have all been contacted by countless local businesses, worried about the effects this is having on their livelihoods and, without urgent intervention, we are worried about the impact this will have on our city region’s embryonic recovery. It is estimated that the cost to our economy is circa £3bn in lost tourism revenue last year. We cannot afford to reverse the progress we were making pre-pandemic when we were the fastest growing city region in the country.

That is why we are calling on you to step up, as you did at the start of the pandemic, to give struggling businesses and workers a lifeline. We need a package of support to be brought forward quickly to assist all of the sectors affected by the knock-on effect of restrictions – including support for staff hit by a loss of earnings or employment during the festive period. The current Test and Trace Support Payments remain inadequate and, as research shows, is an impediment to people getting tested and self-isolating.

Please act now. Countless businesses up and down the country are relying on you.

We look forward to your response.

Best wishes,

Liverpool City Region Metro Mayor Steve Rotheram

Cllr Mike Wharton, Leader, Halton Borough Council

Cllr Graham Morgan, Leader, Knowsley Borough Council

Joanne Anderson, Mayor of Liverpool

Cllr Ian Maher, Leader, Sefton Borough Council

Cllr David Baines, Leader, St. Helens Borough Council

Cllr Janette Williamson, Leader, Wirral Borough Council