Many of the business disruption grants that have become available in the last few weeks are being distributed by local authorities. They include support for:

• Businesses obliged to close due to local or national lockdown and
• Businesses that have been severely affected by local or national restrictions but are still trading.

Central government is funding these grants but responsibility for distributing the grants rests with local authorities in England. The regions are also receiving additional funds from central government which again will be distributed locally.

In all cases, business owners should be aware that:

• Local Authorities (LA) have the freedom to determine the precise eligibility criteria for these grants.
• Government does expect that funding will be targeted at: hospitality, bed and breakfast and leisure businesses.

LAs will also be expected to use their local knowledge when selecting recipients for grant funding.

If your business is affected, and if you have received no funding or clarification if you are eligible for funding, you may be advised to call your LA asap.

It is entirely possible that affected businesses will fall through any filtering process. In which case, lifting your hand to request a slice of available funding may be a wise move.