Council extends deadline for Business Interruption Fund
13 December 2021
Cheshire East Council has extended the application deadline for its Business Interruption Fund until February to provide further support to businesses affected by the latest Covid restrictions.
The Business Interruption Fund is to support businesses that can demonstrate they have continued to be impacted by the pandemic, post the ending of the government’s ‘roadmap out of lockdown’ on 19 July.
This could be for periods of temporary closure due to a Covid-19 outbreak or staff isolation requirements or could include periods of reduced service due to staff shortages, supply chain issues or ongoing restrictions, such as international travel restrictions.
The fund was due to close to applications on 17 December but following the reintroduction of some restrictions in response to the Omicron variant, the deadline has now been extended by the council until 28 February 2022.
Awards of up to £5,000 can be made to eligible applicants and so far, the council has paid out more than £416,000 through the fund.
Councillor Nick Mannion, chair of Cheshire East Council’s economy and growth committee, said: “We understand that the reintroduction of some Covid restrictions will be a great cause of concern to some businesses and that many were already continuing to be impacted by the pandemic.
“We hope that by extending the deadline for our Business Interruption Fund it will help to alleviate some of the pressures on businesses and encourage those who may not have considered applying previously, to do so.”
The council has also extended the deadline until 28 February 2022 for those wishing to apply for a Recovery and Growth Grant, which is to support economic recovery and assist businesses that are seeking to grow, adapt, diversify, and expand their current operation to support long-term sustainability.
The grant is for businesses seeking to invest in their premises, facilities or equipment that will enable them to reopen quickly, bring staff and customers safely back to work, or to capitalise on new opportunities.
Grants of between £5,000 and £25,000 towards eligible investments can be applied for retrospectively.
Both the Recovery and Growth Grant and Business Interruption Fund were launched after the council was awarded a further allocation of Additional Restrictions Grant (ARG) funding by government.
You can find our information about whether your business is eligible for any of the schemes and apply via the Covid-19 help for businesses webpage.