Coronavirus – Business Support
The team at Destination Chesterfield is keen to keep Chesterfield and North Derbyshire businesses up-to-date on the latest advice, guidance and support regarding the coronavirus outbreak in the UK.
Businesses should remind their staff to follow the current NHS advice – https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/coronavirus-covid-19/
New guidance has been released on the 11th May 2020 by the Government – https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/staying-alert-and-safe-social-distancing/staying-alert-and-safe-social-distancing
Derbyshire Country Council are now reporting local case information on a weekly basis – https://www.derbyshire.gov.uk/social-health/health-and-wellbeing/health-protection/disease-control/coronavirus/cases/cases.aspx
Summer Statement to aid short term recovery
The Chancellor of the Exchequer, Rt Hon Rishi Sunak MP, announced in his summer statement over £30 billion of support, which included:
Supporting Jobs
- Introduction of a Job Retention Bonus to help firms keep furloughed workers. UK Employers will receive a one-off bonus of £1,000 for each furloughed employee who is still employed as of 31 January 2021.
- New £2 billion Kickstart Scheme will be launched to create fully subsidised jobs for young people, covering 100% of the National Minimum Wage for 25 hours a week for six months.
- Businesses will be given £2,000 for each new apprentice they hire under the age of 25.
- £111 million investment to triple the scale of traineeships in 2020-21.
- £17 million of funding to triple the number of sector-based work academy placements in 2020-21.
- £900 million to double the number of work coaches in job centres to 27,000.
- A £32 million investment in the National Careers Service.
Creating Jobs
- £8.8 billion to be spent on new infrastructure, decarbonisation and maintenance projects (as announced in his March Budget and more recently by the Prime Minister last week).
- £3 billion green investment package to support around 140,000 green job.
- £2 billion Green Homes Grant scheme to enable home owners and landlords to make energy efficient improvements to their properties.
- £1 billion programme to improve energy efficiency in public sector building such as hospitals and social housing.
Protecting Jobs:
- The Government will introduce an Eat Out to Help Out discount scheme. This will provide a 50% reduction for sit-down meals in cafes, restaurants and pubs across the UK from Monday to Wednesday every week throughout August 2020.
- VAT will be cut on most tourism and hospitality-related activities from 20% to 5% from 15 July until 12 January 2021.
- The stamp duty threshold will rise from £125,000 to £500,000 until 31 March 2021.
Full details of the spending can be found at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/a-plan-for-jobs-documents
General guidance for businesses on how to deal with the virus
Operation of the workplace during coronavirus outbreak
Government guidance for operation of businesses in different sectors.
https://www.gov.uk/guidance/working-safely-during-coronavirus-covid-19
Financial support to businesses
The Government has implemented a range of measures to support businesses who are experiencing difficulties because of Coronavirus.
Use the Government’s support finder tool to see what support you are eligible for – https://www.gov.uk/business-coronavirus-support-finder
More information about these measures can be found at https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/financial-support-for-businesses-during-coronavirus-covid-19
As one of these measures, the Government is providing grants to small and medium sized businesses, to help them through the Coronavirus period.
Further details on the eligibility criteria are available on the Government website.
Chesterfield Borough Council is currently identifying local businesses who are possible recipients of these grants and we are keen to pay the grants as soon as possible.
To help Chesterfield Borough Council to quickly transfer the money to businesses, please download and complete the below form. You can return your completed form by:
- emailing it to revenues.billing@chesterfield.gov.uk with a subject title: Business Rates – Coronavirus Grant.
You will receive an automated response, confirming your application has been received.
- posting it to the following address:
Business Rates
Customer Service Centre
85 New Square
Chesterfield
S40 1AH
| Business Rates Coronavirus Grant |  (PDF 28 KB) |
If you do not know your business rates account details, or are unable to download the form, please wait to receive your letter from Chesterfield Borough Council which will already have this information included. You can then return your completed for as directed above.
On receipt of this information, Chesterfield Borough Council will validate your eligibility for the grant and will arrange for money to be transferred to your bank account by BACS payment.
Support for Chesterfield Borough Council Commercial Tenants
Chesterfield Borough has agreed a package of support for it’s commercial tenants affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.
The council, which is a landlord to over 400 commercial tenants, is eager to work with them to help them to get through this difficult period and have put the a the following measures in place for those who need support:
- Voluntary / charity sector tenants – Rent charged during the period of 1 April to 30 June 2020 will be waived.
- Retail, food, leisure and other large businesses forced to be closed down – Businesses who have been forced to close will automatically have the option to defer rental payments for the period of 1 April to 30 June 2020. The sum deferred will be recovered as part of the rental payments made over the following 18 months.
- Other office and industrial businesses – All other businesses can apply to the council for their rental payments to be similarly deferred for the period of 1 April to 30 June 2020. Each application will be assessed on its individual merits, taking into account the type of business and the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on its ability to continue to trade. If agreed, the sum deferred will be recovered as part of the rental payments made over the following 18 months.
The council will be contacting all tenants directly and details of how to apply to defer your rental payments can be found at: www.chesterfield.gov.uk/your-council/coronavirus-information-hub/businesses-information
Chesterfield Borough Council announce discretionary grants for local businesses (June 2020)
On 5 June 2020, Chesterfield Borough Council has been awarded £1.27 million from the Government to provide discretionary grants to local businesses who were not eligible to receive funding from the Small Business Grant or Retail, Hospitality and Leisure Grant Funds.
The new grant scheme opens on Friday 5 June 2020 and closes for applications on 17 June 2020.
Small businesses can apply for grants of up to £25,000, though the council expects that most grant payments will be in the range of £2,500 to £10,000. The following types of businesses are eligible for this new grant:
- Small businesses in shared offices or other flexible workspaces; for example, business/industrial parks and incubator offices which do not have their own business rates assessment
- Regular market traders who do not have their own business rates assessment but have fixed building costs, such as rent
- Bed and Breakfast accommodation providers who are registered as a food business within Chesterfield Borough Council and pay Council Tax instead of Business Rates
- Charities in receipt of charitable business rates relief which would otherwise have been eligible for small business rates relief
To apply for this new grant scheme businesses must:
- Have been the occupier of a property with a trading address in Chesterfield borough used wholly or mainly for business purposes on 11 March 2020
- Employ fewer than 50 people
- Have a rateable value or annual rent or mortgage of below £51,000
- Be able to evidence relatively high ongoing fixed building costs
- Be able to demonstrate that they have had a significant drop in income due to the Covid-19 pandemic and related restrictions
- Be able to demonstrate the business is their sole or primary source of income
In order to apply you will need to download and complete an application form from the Chesterfield Borough Council website and provide the necessary supporting evidence. You will then need to submit it electronically via the council’s secure document management system on their website.
Further information on how to apply, criteria and evidence required is available here: www.chesterfield.gov.uk/your-council/coronavirus-information-hub/businesses-information.aspx#hub_discretionary_grants_local
If you have any further questions about these grants please contact the team by emailing discretionarygrant@chesterfield.gov.uk
Bounce Back Loans scheme
Small businesses will benefit from a new fast-track finance scheme providing loans with a 100% government-backed guarantee for lenders, the Chancellor announced on Monday 27 April.
Rishi Sunak said the new Bounce Back Loans scheme, which will provide loans of up to £50,000, would help bolster the existing package of support available to the smallest businesses affected by the coronavirus pandemic.
The scheme has been designed to ensure that small firms who need vital cash injections to keep operating can get finance in a matter of days, and comes alongside the £6 billion awarded in business grants, supporting 4 million jobs through the job retention scheme and generous tax deferrals supporting hundreds of thousands of firms.
The government, which has been consulting extensively with business representatives about the design of the new scheme, will provide lenders with a 100% guarantee for the loan and pay any fees and interest for the first 12 months. No repayments will be due during the first 12 months.
The loans will be easy to apply for through a short, standardised online application. The loan should reach businesses within days- providing immediate support to those that need it as easily as possible.
Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme
Claim for 80% of your employee’s wages plus any employer National Insurance and pension contributions, if you have put them on furlough because of coronavirus (COVID-19).
https://www.gov.uk/guidance/claim-for-wages-through-the-coronavirus-job-retention-scheme
Government announce extension to Job Retention Scheme
Individuals and businesses claiming Statutory Sick Pay relief
Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme
Available in the week commencing 23 March 2020. It will be delivered through a range of over 40 accredited lenders and offer attractive terms for both businesses applying for new facilities and lenders, with the aim of supporting the continued provision of finance to UK businesses experiencing increased costs or disruptions to cashflow during the Covid-19 outbreak.
The scheme provides the lender with a government-backed guarantee against the outstanding facility balance, potentially enabling a ‘no’ credit decision from a lender to become a ‘yes’. The Government will cover the first twelve months of interest payments and any facility arrangement fees charged by lenders, so businesses will benefit from no upfront costs and lower initial repayments. The maximum value of a facility provided under the scheme will be £5m. Note that the borrower always remains 100% liable for the debt.
Any business interested in applying to CBILS should talk to their bank or finance provider (not the British Business Bank) as soon as possible and discuss their business plan with them. This will help the finance provider to act quickly once the Scheme has launched.
Coronavirus Business Toolkit
Chesterfield Champions, East Midlands Chamber have created a toolkit for businesses with a number of downloadable templates to use in their organisation
https://www.emc-dnl.co.uk/news/2020/02/24/coronavirus-planning-ahead/
HMRC helpline launched to help businesses concerned about paying their tax
Companies to receive 3-month extension period to file accounts during COVID-19
Businesses will be given an additional 3 months to file accounts with Companies House to help companies avoid penalties as they deal with the impact of COVID-19 – www.gov.uk/government/news/companies-to-receive-3-month-extension-period-to-file-accounts-during-covid-19?
Coronavirus – Mental Health support and information
Mind have information on their website if you are worried about coronavirus and how it could affect your life.
https://www.mind.org.uk/information-support/coronavirus-and-your-wellbeing/
COVID-19 Information for Apprentices and Employers of Apprentices
If you are an apprentice or an employer of an Apprentice, we understand that you may have some very specific questions about your apprenticeship or how to support your Apprentice during the COVID-19 outbreak.
Coronavirus (COVID-19): apprenticeship programme response
Local and Regional Guidance and Support
Supporting Local
Campaign by Destination Chesterfield to promote businesses supporting the local community during the Coronavirus.
Businesses can submit information to be included on the page.
Chesterfield Borough Council
https://www.chesterfield.gov.uk/your-council/coronavirus-information-hub.aspx
Tourism Sector Advice
Chesterfield Champion Visit Peak District and Derbyshire have prepared advice, guidance and templates for local businesses in the tourism sector https://www.visitpeakdistrict.com/industry/business-support/useful-links/coronavirus-guidance-and-support.
Charities Aid Foundation Coronavirus Emergency Fund
The Charities Aid Foundation (CAF) has launched a new Coronavirus Emergency Fund. Through this fund smaller charities, not for profit organisations, social enterprises and unregistered community groups can apply for grants of up to £10,000 to help them to continue to deliver much needed support to within their communities. https://www.chesterfield.co.uk/2020/04/charities-aid-foundation-launches-coronavirus-emergency-fund/
D2N2 Growth Hub – D2N2 Business Investment Fund
The D2N2 Growth Hub are able to offer grants to eligible businesses via the Business Investment Fund, which is funded by the European Regional Development Fund.
The D2N2 Business Investment Fund is available to support small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) with projects that will directly improve their productivity, efficiency and/ or job creation. The fund will support projects such as digital developments, specialist consultancy advice and some equipment purchases.
Grants of between £3,500 and £20,000 are available and will contribute up to a maximum of 35% of project costs. In some circumstances grants of more than £20,000 can be supported where exceptional outputs can be evidenced but this is at the discretion of the fund managers.
There are a number of alternative funding options available within D2N2 and the D2N2 Growth Hub will work with you to establish which solution best meets your business needs.
For further information please contact us on 0333 006 9178 or visit https://www.d2n2growthhub.co.uk/covid-19/
Derbyshire County Council
Read the latest advice from Derbyshire County Council here – https://www.derbyshire.gov.uk/social-health/health-and-wellbeing/health-protection/disease-control/coronavirus/coronavirus-covid-19.aspx
Derbyshire County Council Emergency Relief Fund
The Derbyshire County Council Emergency Relief Fund for the county’s smallest businesses is now in place. The Emergency Relief Fund criteria and application form are available online at www.derbyshire.gov.uk/businessgrants. Businesses will need to be registered in Derbyshire, be able to evidence a loss of income as a direct result of the coronavirus outbreak and fulfil the other criteria laid out online in order to apply. The Fund will be open until the 17th April 2020 and has a limited number of grants available.
Information for employers recruiting or making redundancies
This information is for all businesses and employers across Derby, Derbyshire, Nottingham and Nottinghamshire who are having to make changes to their workforce as a result of the Coronavirus pandemic. Please follow the advice below to ensure we can support your employees and the labour market during this time.
Recruitment Information
If you are seeking to fill urgent vacancies, short or long term, to meet changes to your business as a result of Covid 19, you can be connected immediately with available individuals.
Please register your vacancies with:
John Blankley Senior Employment Support Adviser Email: John.Blankley@futuresforyou.com Phone: 0115 876 4947 / 07570 671592
Please have the following information available when registering your vacancies: • Nature of work • Number of vacancies (can be approximate) • Necessary or desirable skills requirement • Location of vacancies • Any current recruitment routes being used
Volunteering opportunities can also be registered via the above method
Redundancy Information
If you have already made employees redundant or are about to make small numbers redundant (up to five), please refer those individuals for direct support to:
Email: NationalCareersServiceNCC@futuresforyou.com Phone: 0800 917 94 19
If you are planning to make larger-scale redundancies (five or more) additional support is also available for you as an employer and your employees. In these circumstances, please use the same contact details as above but ensure your contact includes: • Notification of redundancies and scale • Number and job roles affected • Last day of work for affected individuals (if known)
For general guidance and links to further information on redundancy for both employers and employees, please visit: www.gov.uk/guidance/redundancy-help-finding-work-and claiming-benefits
Local News
Business Support News
- Chesterfield Borough Council announce discretionary grants for local businesses (05/06/2020)
- ‘Chesterfield is Open’ creative project supports retailers to reopen (04/06/2020)
- Chesterfield Borough Council announce plans to reopen markets (29/05/2020)
- Derbyshire Times launches interactive online map to support local businesses during lockdown (29/05/2020)
- Chesterfield Borough Council issue Business Grants update (28/05/2020)
- Chesterfield town centre prepares for retail reopening (26/05/2020)
- Grants available for Derbyshire Visitor Economy Businesses (18/05/2020)
- Action Grants available for local groups with ‘Derbyshire Spirit’ (18/05/2020)
- Furlough scheme extended until October (12/05/2020)
- New guidance launched by Governement to help get Brits safely back to work (12/05/2020)
- East Midlands Growth Hubs fund business RESTART Programme (12/05/2020)
- Chesterfield accountants prepare checklist to support SMEs to return to work post lockdown (11/05/2020)
- Small businesses boosted by bounce back loans (28/04/2020)
- Chesterfield Borough Council offers support for commercial tenants (27/04/2020)
- Council Leader lobbies Prime Minster for further financial support for local authorities (23/04/2020)
- Chesterfield Borough Council reaches over £15 million paid in business support grants (22/04/2020)
- Derbyshire County Council waives Trusted Trader member fees (21/04/2020)
- Chancellor announces support for innovative firms hit by coronavirus (21/04/2020)
- Government launches new coronavirus business support finder tool (21/04/2020)
- Businesses offered rent deferrals for three months (09/04/2020)
- D2N2 appeals to businesses for Personal Protective Equipment (06/04/2020)
- Sport England funding package to help sport and physical activity manage the COVID-19 crisis (06/04/2020)
- Charities Aid Foundation Coronavirus Emergency Fund (03/04/2020)
- Redeployment Triage Service launched for employees affected by Coronavirus Redundancies (30/03/2020)
- Chancellor gives support to millions of self-employed individuals (26/03/2020)
- Chesterfield Borough Council update on grants and business rate relief process (26/03/2020)
- Covid-19 Community Response Unit set up to bring agencies together (25/03/20)
- Meet the Buyer Event Cancelled: But local companies can still benefit from Northern Gateway development (24/03/20)
- Coronavirus – Business support to launch from today (23/03/20)
- Derbyshire Emergency Relief Fund for businesses now in place (23/03/20)
- Derbyshire County Council has set aside £1 million worth of funding to support residents and businesses who may be affected by coronavirus. (13/03/20)
Other news
- Restaurants and food producers can pledge meals for communities through Open Kitchens (05/06/2020)
- Local residents asked to share Covid-19 experiences for new book (05/06/2020)
- Chesterfield’s popular Flea Market to return next week (04/06/2020)
- £35,000 funding for Chesterfield Theatres confirmed by Arts Council England (03/06/2020)
- Chesterfield business expands despite Covid-19 industry setbacks (02/06/2020)
- Talent contest by local care group lifts spirits amid coronavirus crisis (31/05/2020)
- Free careers support offered for workers, employers and students (30/05/2020)
- New survey launched to better understand how Covid-19 has affected physical activity levels (28/05/2020)
- Chesterfield Borough Council’s Careline supports vulnerable residents (24/05/2020)
- County Council release statement on Derbyshire school reopenings (22/05/2020)
- Chesterfield College to hold virtual events to help people plan for September (22/05/2020)
- Chesterfield Royal leads the way in Covid-19 research (18/05/2020)
- Specialist Ashgate Hospicecare teams supporting NHS staff at Chesterfield Royal looking after COVID-19 patients (16/05/2020)
- Chesterfield manufacturer launches click and collect service providing sanitiser to local businesses (14/05/2020)
- Twist continues to publish virtual magazine (13/05/2020)
- Golf Courses to re-open across Chesterfield (12/05/2020)
- Derbyshire recycling centres to open for waste that cannot be stored safely at home (12/05/2020)
- Quarantine Cuisine cooks up Live Demo Kitchen (28/04/2020)
- Lime Living Estate Agents organise children’s art display to show support for NHS and key workers (23/04/2020)
- The Tickled Trout provides meals for frontline NHS staff (21/04/2020)
- Countywide effort to deliver emergency food parcels (18/04/2020)
- Chesterfield tea-blender collaborates with local traders to launch gift hamper deliveries (17/04/2020)
- Derbyshire key workers asked for their views on bus services during coronavirus outbreak (16/04/2020)
- Chesterfield Borough Council staff redeployed to support the community (16/04/2020)
- Chesterfield’s MTM Products supplies the NHS with lifesaving equipment (15/04/2020)
- Geeks Headquarters producing mask straps for key workers and NHS staff (14/04/2020)
- Whittam Cox Architects use 3D printers to produce PPE for NHS staff (13/04/2020)
- Banner Jones Solicitors offering half price Wills to NHS staff (10/04/2020)
- CBE+ set to help in UK ventilator shortage (07/04/2020)
- University of Derby donates PPE equipment to Chesterfield Royal Hospital (07/04/2020)
- Chesterfield Borough Council supports ‘Everyone In’ initiative to tackle homelessness (07/04/2020)
- Casa Hotel commends NHS staff with free meals (07/04/2020)
- Businesses unite to support health and social care workers across Chesterfield and Derbyshire (06/04/2020)
- Derbyshire County Council care worker recruitment drive (03/04/2020)
- Prompt project completion supports NHS at crucial time (02/04/2020)
- Chesterfield manufacturer offers factory, staff and resources in response to national COVID-19 effort (01/04/2020)
- Chesterfield manufacturer shifts production to bespoke face shields (01/04/2020)
- Community Response Unit launched to help those in need (26/03/2020)
- Coronavirus outbreak: latest Chesterfield Borough Council services update (25/03/20)
- Coronavirus outbreak: latest Chesterfield Borough Council services update (24/03/20)
- Chatsworth to close garden with immediate effect (22/03/20)
- Coronavirus outbreak: Chesterfield Borough Council services update (19/03/20)
- Changes to council services in Chesterfield (19/03/20)
- Chesterfield Market Traders continue to trade (17/03/20)
- Ashgate Hospicecare takes steps to keep end of life patients safe from coronavirus (13/03/20)
Things are changing all the time and any new information we receive will be added to this page and communicated via our social media channels and our e-marketing activity.
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