Coronavirus – support for businesses

If you’re a Peterborough business in need of support, please get in touch with Opportunity Peterborough directly.

The three grants available to Peterborough businesses

  • COVID-19 Additional Relief Fund (CARF),
  • Omicron Hospitality and Leisure Grant – OPEN – applications must be made by 28 February 2022.
  • Additional Restrictions Grant (ARG)

Visit the Peterborough City Council website for more information >>

 

Workplace safety

Click here to read the latest advice for businesses from Jyoti Atri, Director of Public Health for Cambridgeshire and Peterborough.

Read the local exemptions for isolation:

Stay up-to-date: To subscribe to the Industrial Strategy Bulletin or Business Readiness Bulletin, email sed@beis.gov.uk

 

Support for businesses

Use the government’s online tool to find financial support for your business.

Use the links below to navigate this page:

 

Workplace specific guidance:

    • Government guides for 8 workplace settings
    • Trading standards – free advice
    • Protection for commercial tenants
    • Providing proof of coronavirus absence from work
    • Guidance posters for staff, employers and businesses

Business Support Helpline (England) can also provide advice
Telephone: 0300 456 3565
Monday to Friday, 9am to 6pm

The helpline can also be contacted on: Twitter, Facebook, YouTube

Government webinars

Time to Pay service

Receive support with tax affairs through HMRC’s Time To Pay service

Who is eligible? Businesses and the self-employed that are in financial distress and have outstanding tax liabilities.

Requirements: Arrangements are agreed on a case-by-case basis and are tailored to individual circumstances and liabilities. If you have missed a tax payment or you might miss your next payment due to COVID-19, please call HMRC’s dedicated helpline: 0800 0159 559. 

 

Grants and loans

Recovery Loans Scheme

At Autumn Budget 2021, the government announced that the Recovery Loan Scheme will be extended by six months to 30 June 2022, with the following changes applying from 1 January 2022:

  • The scheme will only be open to businesses with a turnover not exceeding £45m per annum
  • The maximum amount of finance available will be £2 million per business (maximum amount per Group limited to £6m)
  • The guarantee coverage that the government will provide to lenders will be reduced to 70%

You can apply to the scheme if Covid-19 has affected your business. You can use the finance for any legitimate business purpose – including managing cashflow, investment and growth. However, you must be able to afford to take out additional debt finance for these purposes. You can still apply to the scheme even if you have accessed the Bounce Back Loan Scheme (BBLS), the Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme (CBILS), or the Coronavirus Large Business Interruption Loan Scheme (CLBILS)

Findout more about the scheme at the British Business Bank’s website: https://www.british-business-bank.co.uk/ourpartners/recovery-loan-scheme/

 

Guidance for the charity sector


The Charity Commission has produced guidance for running charities during the outbreak.

Further resources can be found here:

 

Workplace specific guidance

Government guides for workplace settings

  • 5 steps to working safely – Practical actions for businesses to take based on 5 main steps.
  • Close contact services – Guidance for people who provide close contact services, including hairdressers, barbers, beauticians, tattooists, sports and massage therapists, dress fitters, tailors and fashion designers.
  • Construction and other outdoor work – Guidance for people who work in or run outdoor working environments.
  • Factories, plants and warehouses – Guidance for people who work in or run factories, plants and warehouses.
  • Heritage locations – Guidance for people who work or volunteer in heritage locations.
  • Hotels and other guest accommodation – Guidance for people who work in or run hotels and other guest accommodation
  • Labs and research facilities – Guidance for people who work in or run indoor labs and research facilities and similar environments.
  • Offices and contact centres – Guidance for people who work in or run offices, contact centres and similar indoor environments.
  • Other people’s homes – Guidance for people working in, visiting or delivering to other people’s homes.
  • Restaurants, pubs, bars and takeaway services – Guidance for people who work in or run restaurants, pubs, bars, cafes or takeaways.
  • Shops and branches – Guidance for people who work in or run shops, branches, stores or similar environments.
  • Vehicles – Guidance for people who work in or from vehicles, including couriers, mobile workers, lorry drivers, on-site transit and work vehicles, field forces and similar.
  • The visitor economy – Guidance for people who work in hotels and guest accommodation, indoor and outdoor attractions, and business events and consumer shows.

Trading Standards – Free compliance advice

Trading Standards, Environmental Health at Peterborough City Council are offering all SMEs in Peterborough FREE business compliance advice, both legal and operational,  on any matters arising from the government’s emergency controls. To access this advice visit www.cambridgeshire.gov.uk/regulatorycompanion

Extra protection for businesses with ban on evictions for commercial tenants 

Commercial tenants who cannot pay their rent because of coronavirus will be protected from eviction. More information is available here. 

Providing proof of coronavirus absence from work

People unable to work for more than seven days because of coronavirus (COVID-19) can obtain an isolation note through a new online service.

Guidance posters for staff, employers and businesses

Public Health England have produced guidance posters that should be downloaded, printed and displayed in the workplace:

Notices to exporters

HMRC has held webinars on support available for international trade, watch recorded sessions here.

The Department for International Trade’s Export Control Joint Unit (ECJU) has issued two Notices to Exporters concerning the impact on training and licensing activities. For general export control queries please contact ECJU’s Helpline on 020 7215 4594 or exportcontrol.help@trade.gov.uk.

Financial support for exporters

UK Export Finance (UKEF) works with banks and insurance brokers to help companies of all sizes fulfil and get paid for export contracts. It provides guarantees, loans and insurance on behalf of the government that can protect UK exporters facing delayed payments or transit restrictions. Help from UKEF:

      • if your business is facing disruption due to late payments, UKEF can help ease cash flow constraints by guaranteeing bank loans through its Export Working Capital Scheme
      • if you are concerned about getting paid, UKEF offers an export insurance policy that can help you recover the costs of fulfilling an order that is terminated by events outside your control
      • UKEF can also support finance for overseas buyers through the Direct Lending Facility scheme, so they can continue to buy your goods and services
      • UKEF has over £4 billion of capacity to support UK firms exporting to China, as well as significant capacity across other markets affected by coronavirus (COVID-19) to help cover these risks.

     

 

Accessing PPE equipment and perspex screens

To help businesses source PPE equipment and perspex screens to keep their staff and visitors safe, Opportunity Peterborough is working with the Cambridgeshire & Peterborough Combined Authority to identify local providers where possible.

For support accessing PPE equipment, please contact Opportunity Peterborough directly – email: info@opportunitypeterborough.co.uk

Local perspex screen suppliers

Associated pages

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