Smaller businesses benefit from £20million in new Coronavirus business grants

The Minister for Regional Growth and Local Government has today (30 July 2020) announced £20million of new government funding to help smaller businesses in England to to deal with the effects of the Coronavirus pandemic on their business. Nearly £409,000 of the total has been allocated to support businesses in Leicester and Leicestershire.

What is the small business funding for?

Small and medium sized businesses will have access to grants of between £1,000 - £5,000 to help them access new technology and other equipment as well as professional, legal, financial or other advice to help them get back on track.

It comes on top of an unprecedented package of Government support to help businesses to recover, including the £2 billion Kickstart Scheme announced earlier this month, which will create hundreds of thousands of new, fully subsidised jobs for young people across the country, as well as £1.6 billion invested in scaling-up employment support schemes, training and apprenticeships to help people looking for a job.

Minister for Regional Growth and Local Government, Simon Clarke MP said:

"We have always said that we would stand behind our businesses and communities as we rebuild following the coronavirus pandemic. This new funding does exactly that.

Businesses will be able to use these new grants to pay for the expertise, equipment and technology they need to adapt, recover and rebuild.

Small and medium sized businesses are the beating heart of communities; they provide employment and contribute significantly to local economies and we are determined to give them the support they need to continue to thrive."

The support of small business grants will be fully-funded by the Government from the England European Regional Development Fund and distributed through Growth Hubs, embedded in local areas across England.

David Heys, Managing Director and Head of Commercial Law at Leicestershire Solicitors Lawson-West, said: 

"The Government has recognised the important part that smaller businesses play in sustaining the local economy. The additional grants are indeed good news for struggling smaller businesses in Leicester, Leicestershire and the East Midlands, especially if they need investment capital to help fund a new idea or IT solution that could help them overcome current difficulties due to the business effects of Coronavirus."

More information: 

• The support will be fully funded by the Government with no obligation for businesses to contribute financially.

• The funding is being provided to address immediate needs and all grants must be awarded by 28 February 2021 and all activity fully completed by 31 March 2021.

• More details about access to funding through the Leicester and Leicestershire LEP and ERDF programme can be found here. 

• The funding has been allocated to Growth Hubs within each LEP area in line with the current ERDF Programme.

• The funding being provided to businesses is supported by the England European Regional Development Fund as part of the European Structural and Investment Funds Growth Programme 2014-2020. The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government is the Managing Authority for the European Regional Development Fund in England. For more information visit...

If your business is suffering under the pandemic and you need a supportive, confidential discussion with a third-party who is not related to your business who can offer an experienced assessment of your business options, please speak to David Heys – just ask for him on 0116 212 1000.

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