COVID-19 adaption grants to help even more small food service and hospitality businesses in tourism sector

In order to give businesses more time to complete applications, the council has extended the applications deadline by three weeks to September 14. In addition, more businesses can apply as those with a greater rateable value, of up to £150,000, are now eligible.

Furthermore, the cut-off end date for eligible spend, originally set as July 31, has been removed, so businesses can now claim any eligible expenditure from May 1, 2020 up to the point they make their application.    

Applications to the £100,000 adaption grants programme are invited from hotels, guest houses and B&Bs, cafes, restaurants, pubs, and takeaway food outlets within the borough. Hospitality accommodation providers must demonstrate that they are part of the tourism sector.

Examples of items that businesses could claim for include posters, signage, sneeze screens, floor stickers and markings, barriers and other controls to ensure social distancing, sanitiser stands and dispensers. Consumable PPE such as gloves, masks and hand sanitiser can also be claimed.

Businesses can claim 50 per cent of their eligible expenditure up to a maximum of £2,500, providing this exceeds £500 and they can prove it relates to equipment and supplies purchased to trade safely in line with the Government guidelines.

Visit www.great-yarmouth.gov.uk/coronavirus-advice-businesses for the link to the online application form, eligibility criteria and further business advice. Applications close at midnight on Monday, September 14 and grants will be allocated on a first come, first served basis, with only one claim accepted per business.

Cllr Carl Smith and Cllr Trevor Wainwright, leaders of the council's main political groups, said: "This continues to be a challenging and uncertain time for businesses, which have had to incur additional costs to meet the national regulations and ensure the safety of their customers and staff

"We've already handed out more than £30m in Government grants to local businesses, under both the local and national schemes, and we know that money has been a lifeline for many businesses.

 "This new targeted small grants programme, from Norfolk's tourism sector support package, provides an extra helping hand specifically to assist small food service and hospitality businesses within that crucial sector with their adaption expenditure.

Expanding the scheme enables the council to help even more businesses, and the extra three weeks gives them a wider window to get together and submit their applications."  

The adaption grants programme is part of Norfolk's tourism sector support package from the Norfolk Strategic Fund. The project, led by Norfolk County Council in partnership with all seven district councils and Visit East of England, is being put in place to help the tourism sector to recover from the impact of Covid-19.