Business Update: Budget, Road Closures, Insurance 

Morning everyone,

We hope you are safe and well.

The ground is once again moving fast as we look to understand existing and future grant funding arrangements and navigate the governments roadmap out of lockdown published on the 22nd of February. Like many, we welcomed this with a mixture of hope and caution as we map a recovery path for our town centre business community.

We are pleased to see some light at the end of the tunnel, though we are mindful there is still a long road ahead. Accordingly, following extensive industry lobbying efforts, we are eagerly awaiting further details of the Chancellors, budget announcement today. We know the furlough scheme will be extended, and there is an expectation of further grants, so we will update you with details when we know more.

Locally, we are pleased to see that the local vaccination programme is progressing, though we find recent rises in infection rates concerning. Alongside this, conversations with Warwickshire County Council about the Parade road closure are ongoing – and we welcome your feedback via the survey link here and below.

As always, there is much to digest, so please do not hesitate to reach out and please read on for further information on grants, our road closure survey, insurance claims and upcoming plans.

1. WDC ‘Closed Business’ Grant Information – 16th February to March 31st

All WDC Grant information and updates can be found at this link:

https://www.warwickdc.gov.uk/info/20068/business_awards_and_grants

In respect to forthcoming national lockdown grant payments, WDC have confirmed that they can make another bulk payment to closed businesses for the ongoing closed grants to cover the period from 16th February to 31st March. This process has now begun.

Amounts are below: 16 February – 31 March 2021

• RV £15,000 or under : £2096.29
• RV £15,001 – £50,999 : £3143.86
• RV £51,000 and over: £4714.29

Anyone that’s already had a 2nd or 3rd lockdown payment or ongoing closed grants from WDC, does not need to reapply as you will be automatically paid.

After the 31st March … WDC will let us know and update their website when they have details of the new payment schedules for any businesses that remain legally mandated to close after that point. Please get in touch if you have any concerns or questions about your grant funding allocation as we are happy to help you look into this.

2. Other Grants

A new ARG-Part E’ grant is now open. This is for businesses who are mandated to be ‘open’, but who are suffering hardship as a result of this lockdown (please see below).

Also, we are aware that a recent Warwick County Council grant closed almost as fast as it opened, causing some frustration. We have fed this back to the County and will continue to notify you if we see other opportunities open.

ARG Scheme E:

• As noted above, this will cover those businesses who are NOT mandated to close (so are not eligible for LRSG grants), but who are suffering financial hardship due to restrictions.
• The closing date is Friday 12 March 2021 (midday).
• More information and application links are here: https://www.warwickdc.gov.uk/info/20068/business_awards_and_grants/1638/additional_restrictions_grant_arg
• Please pass this information onto any businesses who you know must stay ‘open’ but are struggling.

For information:

• The full list of businesses mandated to ‘close’ can be found by clicking here (please click).

3.  Road Closure Survey – Please help us by responding

As you know, the Parade and associated side streets (Regent and Warwick Street) have been closed to vehicular traffic and buses since June 2020. This was implemented as a temporary measure by Warwickshire County Council to facilitate Covid social distancing in high footfall areas.

We have been collecting business and customer feedback for some time (thank you to those who have fed back!), and regularly provide feedback to the County Council. We have learnt that whilst some customers, residents and businesses welcomed the changes, there are also significant unresolved challenges, particularly around bus stops, disabled access, amenities, impact on businesses on side streets and deliveries. Also, many cafes and restaurants who might benefit from additional road space for alfresco dining, are located beyond the closed area.

Another review of the scheme is being undertaken next week, so we wanted to update our understanding of your needs and views. It is very important that we can accurately speak on your behalf, so thank you in advance. This should take no longer than 5 minutes…

Please complete our short road closure survey here (please click below):

https://www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/6HB8P3Q

We are also aware of a local petition seeking the retention of the Parade closure in the future, and attracting a mixed response on the Leamington Courier Facebook page. At this point, Warwickshire County Council have confirmed to us that current measures are temporary, and any future changes must go through a formal process of stakeholder consultation taking full account of business and community needs and views.

Reflecting this and the complexity of the issue, we will monitor this and other development plans (detailed below) closely. On balance, we support a consultative approach and feel that future changes to the highway and public realm must be carefully considered, as part of a renewed vision and strategy for our town. This must include a sustainable town-wide transport, parking and logistics strategy that is consulted on, designed and costed alongside other critical town centre needs.

Your views and thoughts are gratefully appreciated.

4. Insurance Claims – Business Interruption

Recently, the UK Supreme Court has handed down its judgment in the Financial Conduct Authority’s COVID-19 business interruption insurance test case, providing much-needed clarity regarding the coverage generally afforded to businesses for their COVID-19 related financial losses.This is a complicated area of insurance law and not something we have expertise in, however we have been researching avenues for your to find out more. The two most useful sources of information we can see are as follows:

The Federation of Small Businesses (FSB):

The FSB have some useful summary details and webinar links found below and offer an advice service to members:

• https://www.fsb.org.uk/resources-page/faq-supreme-court-business-interruption-insurance-ruling.html
• https://www.fsb-insurance-service.com/fsb-insurance-service-blog/fca-covid-19-claims/

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA):

The FCA have produce a policy checker tool below and the attached draft guidance (found here – please click).

• https://www.fca.org.uk/firms/business-interruption-insurance/policy-checker

We know of at least one business looking into this and are interested to know if there are more? … also, please remember to review and update your existing polices if you make changes to how your business is operating.

5.  Upcoming Plans & Activity

BID Projects:

Alison and I are preparing our spring / summer marketing and events programme. This will include a range of creative and inspiring online and town centre based promotions and activities designed to:

• Thank our local community for supporting local businesses;
• Showcase new and existing town centre businesses;
• Welcome back customers and support relevant sectors to open, in accordance with government guidance;
• Further develop the town’s online and social media presence; and
• Prepare for the return of future events, so we can safely attract and welcome visitors with open arms.

Coming up is our Mother’s Day online promotion and our Town Centre Easter Egg Hunt, so please look out for Alison’s emails with more details on how to get involved.

Other Activities:

We continue to represent business interests with respect to a large amount of development and activity around the region and town centre, which we hope will support job creation and economic stability. This includes the possible development of the UK’s first Gigafactory, the Coventry City of Culture programme, and in Leamington a mega-lab for testing, works around the town centre in advance of the 2022 Commonwealth Games, development in the Town Hall and south town as a part of the Future High Street Fund.

Recently, I was also pleased to deliver a presentation on local ‘placemaking’ and the role the local community can play in supporting renewal, at the Warwick District Council ‘Spark Ignite’ 2021 conference. This will be available to view online soon.

BID Support / Advice:

In the meantime, please reach out if there is anything we can support you with. Don’t forget you can find a range of support information contained in previous emails and on our website including:

• Health and Wellbeing Support
• Delivered-it – local delivery and online sales services
• Risk Management & Social Distancing Materials (please let us know what you need):

Also, the Royal Leamington Spa Town Centre Facebook page, Instagram, twitter and www.loveleamington.com is where we showcase what you are now doing, so please keep us updated on your plans.

Please join our Leamington Town Centre Facebook Group if you haven’t already and share your ideas, information, promotions etc. We also post updates on the BID Leamington Facebook Page and information on our website: www.bidleamington2022.mystagingwebsite.com.

Best wishes – please take care and stay in touch.

Steph & Alison

Business Update: Grants, Timing, Info & Links

Afternoon everyone,

We hope you are safe and well.

We are aware that many of you are awaiting information about the timing of desperately needed 3rd lockdown grants – and any further support that is available. Please see some details recently received from WDC below.  

1.  WDC Grant Information

All WDC Grant information and updates can be found at this link:

https://www.warwickdc.gov.uk/info/20068/business_awards_and_grants

2. Third Lockdown Grants (LRSG and Lump Sum Payments of £4K, £6K or £9K depending on RV)

There are currently two grants available to businesses that are ‘mandated to close’. This includes the ongoing LRSG (closed) payments from January 5th and the ‘one-off top up grants’ for closed businesses announced by the government on January 5th. Payment of both these grants is expected to be automatic to any business that has already received previous grants. Please get in touch if you have questions about this.

Please see the WDC link below for up to date information:

https://www.warwickdc.gov.uk/info/20068/business_awards_and_grants/1654/national_lockdown_grant_funding_schemes/2

In terms of timing, as per this link above, the LRSG (closed) payments to cover the 6 week period until February 15th were made on the week commencing January 18th. Please get in touch if you have not received this.

Unfortunately, WDC have not yet received the government software to make the £4K, £6K, or £9K lump sum payments , and as of today, are hoping to have this within 1 week in order to begin making payments as soon as possible next week. WDC officers are aware of the urgency and doing what they can to speed this up. We will keep you updated on progress.

For information:

• The full UK Government guidance to Local Authorities on eligibility can be found by clicking here (please click).
• The full list of businesses mandated to ‘close’ can be found by clicking here (please click).

3. Other Grants

A number of business specific grants are still open – and we are lobbying for support for businesses that have ‘not’ been mandated to close, but who are suffering hardship as a result of this lockdown. This grant, when it is ready this will be known as ‘ARG-Part E’. Further details are below.

Wet Led Pubs Grant

• £1000 for Pubs that do not take more than 50% of their sales in food or ‘wet-led pubs’ who were / are unable to open in Tier 2 or Tier 3.
• Link for information: https://www.warwickdc.gov.uk/info/20068/business_awards_and_grants/1653/wet-led_pubs_christmas_support_payment
• Please note, applications close on 31st January and after this date, WDC will not accept any further applications.

ARG Scheme D 

• This is not relevant to many of our members, as it is for non rated (does not have a business rates account) retail, hospitality and leisure businesses. However, you may know someone.
• Link for information: https://www.warwickdc.gov.uk/info/20068/business_awards_and_grants/1638/additional_restrictions_grant_arg
• Please note, application close on 29th January.

ARG Scheme E (New)

• As noted above, the full criteria are not yet set, but we hope it will cover those businesses who aren’t mandated to close but are suffering financial hardship due to restrictions.
• WDC have advised that it will be ready in the week commencing 8th February. We will notify relevant businesses when we know more.

Please also note, we continue to work with industry bodies to lobby for further business support as we are very concerned about the considerable strain that continues restrictions and uncertainty are causing. Locally, progress is being made to bring down Covid transmission rates and increase testing and vaccinations. As always, please do not hesitate to get in touch if you feel there is something we can help with.

Best wishes and stay safe,

Steph & Alison

Business Update: Grants, Timing & Wellbeing

Hi everyone, 

We hope you are all staying safe and coping as best as you can. This is a quick update on grants, timing of payments and other business support. We appreciate some grant information has been confusing at times, so please take a minute to read this and get in touch if there is anything we can help you with.

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Grants Update

Over the last week Warwick District Council has been preparing for the next round(s) of business grants and we are able to update you with the following. This is a helpful link, and the summary is below:

https://www.warwickdc.gov.uk/info/20068/business_awards_and_grants/1654/national_lockdown_grant_funding_schemes/2

There are 2 schemes under part 3 of the National lockdown from 5 January 2021 onwards as below:

1. National lockdown part 3 grant scheme

Ongoing 14 day payments to all rated businesses mandated to close due to the third lockdown. If you have already received your second national lockdown payment, LRSG closed, sector or open payment you do not need to do anything further. WDC will automatically pay you a 6 week bulk payment of these closed payments by the week commencing 18 January. Please see the link above to find out the values.

2. One off top up grant to all rated businesses mandated to close due to the third lockdown.

The government announced a one off top up payment for all businesses mandated to close during the third national lockdown. This scheme will end on 31 March 2021.

WDC are able to make these payments to you automatically – you do not need to reapply. The only businesses that need to complete an application form are those that have not already had their second national lockdown grant (for the November lockdown).

The amounts you will get are as follows:

• RV £15,000 or under : £4000
• RV £15,001 – £50,999 : £6000
• RV £51,000 and over: £9000

To find out your RV please click here. 

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Grants: Last Call – Tier 3 OPEN Scheme Grants  (Gyms, Fitness Centres, Catering Companies, Hotels, etc)

The WDC retrospective ‘open’ scheme hasn’t had much uptake. This related to the period from December 2nd to 30th for businesses who were NOT mandated to close during Tier 3. The criteria was set by the government and quite narrow, but it will apply to some of you.

The finding is allocated on a first come first served basis, so if you meet the criteria below, please use the links to apply. The business must be:

• Either rated or non-rated
• Wedding caterers and organisers/planners
• Corporate events organisers – including caterers that supply corporate events
• Hotels, guest accommodation that remained open for key workers but did not get the CLOSED grant
• Gyms, fitness centres and spas (not personal care services though)
• Businesses affected by the cancellation of sporting events or spectators at such events
• Riding schools, public halls, arena, farm parks and outdoor adventure activities

We are certain there must be companies that need these funds. The business does not need to be rated in order to apply. It’s a one off payment for the period above as the open scheme has finished now we’re in lockdown.

The website details are here:

https://www.warwickdc.gov.uk/info/20068/business_awards_and_grants/1626/local_restrictions_grant_funding_schemes/3  

Here is the link to the application form:

https://www.warwickdc.gov.uk/info/20068/business_awards_and_grants/1626/local_restrictions_grant_funding_schemes/5

Here is the actual application form:

https://openportal.warwickdc.gov.uk/scripts/OPENPortal-Live.wsc/ndr/ndrlrsgrant.p    

Additional NOTE on ARG-Part D: You will also see information on WDC’s website at this link (please click here)  about ARG-Part D funding. This is for Non-rated retail, leisure and hospitality businesses, which does notinclude the majority of our members (as you have rated business premises). That said, please pass this information on to any non-rated suppliers, friends or collaborators if you know them.  

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Timing of Payments – And Follow-up

For the most part, if you have received previous grants into your bank account – including the second lockdown grant, further funding should come through automatically. However, if you have still not received anything – or think something is missing, please email: visiting.officers@warwickdc.gov.uk. Please include all your property details and the details of the grants in question above. We are happy if you ‘cc’ us.

In terms of timing and amounts, as you will see below, this depends on if we were in Tier 3, 4 or locked down – and on if the business was open or closed (so retail or hospitality). These schemes have also over-lapped, and payments will be combined as follows: 

• As of Tuesday afternoon (12^th Jan), WDC had processed grant payments to everyone eligible who has already received either a second national lockdown grant or a Tier 3 Closed grant, that will cover the period from 30/12/2020 to 15/02/2021. Payments will hopefully be in businesses accounts by the end of the week (Jan 16^th). (Please note, payments up to 29/12/20 have all already been made).
• If a business was closed in Tier 3, it will receive 1 day’s grant for the 30/12/20 (this was an extra day that we were in tier 3, so on top of what was already had).
• Closed businesses in Tier 4 will receive 5 day’s grant for the period 31/12/20 – 04/01/21.
• Closed businesses in 3rd National lockdown from 05/01/21 – paid in advance up to 15/02/21 (3 x fortnightly grants) – so are being paid in a lump sum instead of every 2 weeks.

All these payments (above) will be lumped together when they hit the businesses bank account and show as one payment from WDC.

(However, this does not include the ‘One off top up grant of £4K, £6K or £9K’ at No 2 above, which we understand will be separate, but also processed automatically).  

In addition to the above, a number have asked about ARG-Part C grant payments. These were the one-off £2000 grants for hospitality businesses. As per the update at this link (please click here), WDC are still in the process of making payments. We are however happy to try to follow these up if we can.

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Closing the Grant Gaps – Those Not ‘Mandated to Close’

We are aware that some important businesses are falling through gaps in the ‘grants’ system and not receiving anything. Typically these are businesses that are ‘deemed’ essential and are therefore ‘open’ but who are suffering huge drops in trade / or no trade (e.g. drycleaners, bakeries etc). We are actively speaking to WDC to try to address this. If this sounds like you please get in touch if you haven’t already. 

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Health, Wellbeing & Support

We are mindful that we are facing worrying circumstances, both personally and in respect to staff. There are a variety of support options available – so please reach out if this would be helpful.

Warwickshire County Council has extended its Employee Assistance Programme (EAP) to support owners and staff in town centre micro and small businesses with their health and wellbeing. The programme will be available to businesses with 10 or fewer employees operating in the towns of Warwickshire who may need help. This includes access to information, support and guidance (including coaching and counselling where appropriate) on a wide range of topics including work, career, relationships, family, money management, debt and health and wellbeing. Please get in touch with us or email business@warwickshire.gov.uk if you would like to learn more about this. All enquiries are confidential.

Alongside this, our HR provider ‘Absolute Works’ has produced some information, hints and tips on supporting employee wellbeing as we move through 2021. This is in the form of a practical tool that you can use yourself – or in partnership with employees. To access the wellness action plan (pdf), please click here.

Finally, please get in touch if you need HR, financial or legal support as our partners have been generously supporting members over this time.

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As always, we continue to lobby for additional support and represent business interests locally and nationally. We are open to ideas to help build community spirit, positivity and support each other. We also continue to support your activities online so, please do not hesitate to keep us updated on what you are doing and reach out if you have any queries. 

Best wishes and stay safe,

Steph & Alison

‘Make Some Noise’ for Hospitality & Leisure

BID Leamington is calling on hospitality and leisure businesses in the town to ‘make some noise’ after it was kept in Tier 3 restrictions today (Thursday).

Leamington, along with the rest of Warwickshire, Coventry and Solihull, has not been changed from its Tier 3 coronavirus restrictions in the government’s review before Christmas.

This means hospitality venues such as restaurants and pubs will have to stay shut to customers.

And with business-led organisation BID Leamington representing over 100 hospitality and leisure venues in the town, it will be launching the ‘Make Some Noise’ campaign to get the government to take notice of their plight.

Owners of hospitality businesses in Leamington will be encouraged to film themselves making plenty of noise with the tools of their trade, such as pots and pans, and upload it to social media using the hashtag #MakeSomeNoise from 11am on Friday December 18.

Frankie Griffiths, general manager of Leamington pub The Drawing Board and BID Leamington member, came up with the idea.

She said: “Existing grant funding is appreciated, but it is nowhere near enough to cover our costs when closed. Our fixed expenses are triple the cost of the grants, plus we are paying employer contributions on furloughed staff.

“We would like to see hospitality businesses up and down the country take our lead, pick up some pots and pans, and share their plight on social media so this message can travel all the way to London.”

And Stephanie Kerr, executive director of BID Leamington, agreed the current support for hospitality businesses was insufficient to keep them viable.

She said: “Leamington’s fantastic hospitality and leisure sector venues simply aren’t getting the support they need from the government. The measures currently in place are not going to save our businesses.

“The original announcement that we would be placed into Tier 3 was disappointing, and this latest announcement has made us even more determined to secure the support our hospitality venues need.

“While we completely understand the need to prioritise public health, our hospitality venues bear the brunt of these restrictions through no fault of their own, and all we ask is that the government support our brilliant businesses in a fair and proportionate manner.

“We are asking for larger grants to reasonably cover hospitality venues’ outgoings, to pause employer contributions to the furlough scheme, and to extend the lower rate of VAT and business rate freeze beyond March 2021.

“Without that support, there’s a strong possibility that not all will be able to keep trading into 2021, and we’d encourage businesses to join in with the #MakeSomeNoise campaign to send a message to the government.

“In the meantime, we would still encourage people to support retail businesses in Leamington by choosing to shop local or ordering from Leamington shops online.

“We are very grateful for the incredible support people have shown so far, and we hope that commitment to shopping local continues.”

BID Leamington’s calls come after the announcement of the ‘Bounce Back Better’ campaign, a nationwide plea for special support measures for retail, hospitality and leisure businesses.

The campaign is asking for a one-off grant of £15,000 for those businesses in Tier 2 and 3 with a rateable value of up to £150,000, and a pause on National Insurance employer contributions for furloughed employees.

It is also seeking an extension of the 100 per cent business rates holiday and the VAT reduction scheme.

Town centre businesses in need of information and support can make contact with the BID team at info@bidleamington2022.mystagingwebsite.com or go to www.bidleamington2022.mystagingwebsite.com. To find out how to support businesses by shopping local, visit www.loveleamington.com and follow @LeamingtonGuide.

To view our ‘Make Some Noise’ video please click here. 

Update – Hospitality Survey, Grants, Parking, BID Support

Hi everyone,

We hope you are doing okay given the mixed news we have received in the last day. This is a quick update with brief news and clarifications. Please stay in touch.

Tier Status

As we are sure you know, yesterday we learnt that Warwickshire has been classified as Tier 3.

https://www.gov.uk/guidance/full-list-of-local-restriction-tiers-by-area

Whilst it is good news that our retail sector can open on December 2nd (clarification below), it is also very disappointing for our hospitality and leisure sector business owners and employees and we are aware that this is causing significant pain and worry.

For information about the respective tiers please click here.

Hospitality & Leisure Sector

We welcomed the change to last orders at 10pm, and 11pm closing in Tier 2, but we also know that being in Tier 3, for now this offers little consolation.

Grant funding support for ‘closed’ Tier 3 businesses will continue and we will update you when we know how this will be administered. Notwithstanding this, we know that this existing grant funding allowance does not come close to offering businesses subject to Tier 3 restrictions sufficient financial support.

Quick 3 min Survey

We would be grateful if you could share any details that help to quantify the critical challenges you face. Data will be anonymised.

Please click here and thank you in advance: https://www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/R8N59B2

What’s Happening Now …

We are speaking to local, regional and national partners to understand, challenge and lobby on key areas of concern. Our message right now is: 2K / 3K grants barely touch the sides of 10-15K monthly rent and other fixed costs for many. Hundreds of staff are furloughed, while owners continue to pay NI and pensions – and of course, all the furlough investment is lost if we don’t get closed Tier 3 businesses open, or on proper life support. Any 14-day review should start from yesterday (not the 2nd of Dec). Leamington’s hospitality and leisure sector is safe, prepared, responsible.

Among other things, our ‘ask’ that includes additional critical ‘life support’ grant funding, pausing NI and pensions contributions on furloughed staff, and extensions to the business rate holiday and VAT reduction schemes. Some business owners face particular challenges with leases, legal, HR issues, so please reach out if you need help. Finally, we know many are looking for more clarity, evidence and certainty around the application of Tiers in local places and the review process.

The national ‘Bounce Back Better’ campaign information is here (please click). We are also open to your thoughts, ideas and feedback.

Retail – Opening Date & Grant Confirmation

For those that can open, we are pleased to confirm that Warwick County Council are of the view, alongside many others, that the new tier structures will come into force one minute past midnight (00:01) on Wednesday 2nd December.

This means, for those that are permitted in Tier 3, you can open your doors on the 2nd of December.

We have also had confirmation that opening on the 2nd of December will not impact your eligibility to grant funding for the 28 day ‘closed’ period in November.

All information and links to grants are here (please click). Please note deadlines are fast approaching.

Free Parking in December – Some Good News

After consulting with key stakeholders across the District including ourselves, Warwick District Council (WDC) have agreed to offer free parking in off street car parks from the 2nd of December. Free parking in WDC off-street car parks will enhance the shopping experience, reduce contact between people and machines in car parks, and support customers to easily return to their favourite shops.

Accordingly, surface car parks will remain ‘short-stay’ for shoppers, while the multi-storey car parks, such as Covent Garden and St Peters, remain best suited those wishing to park all day – so please direct your staff in that direction.

Please also note, the Royal Priors is offering Free parking on Thursdays from 5pm (to support late night shopping). We are waiting to hear what the County Council will offer with respect to on-street / curbside parking.

Late Night Opening / Extended Trading

Royal Priors

• Late night shopping in the Royal Priors will be on Thursdays, beginning on Thursday 3rd – till 8pm.
• From Monday 14th the Royal Priors will be open till 7pm – except on Sundays which will be 5pm and Thursdays 8pm.

Please let us know if you are planning to extend your hours? … please include: Dates and times.

Materials to Support Opening

Alison has emailed you about obtaining any of the following – so if you haven’t already, please let us know what you would like and we will drop it in next week:

• Shop Local window stickers
• Spa Stars – window decorations
• Noel Noses (Cover Your Nose) (A4 Poster)
• Sanitised Santa (Hands) (A4 Poster)
• Inside Instructions (A4 Poster)
• Spa Space – Fill in text (A4 Poster)
• Spa Space – Parade Safely (A4 Poster)

THANK YOU! … as always … we remain inspired by everything we can see you doing to navigate a path forwards and we are here to help in any way we can.

Don’t forget to join our Leamington Town Centre Facebook Group if you haven’t already. We will also post updates on the BID Leamington Facebook page – and the Royal Leamington Spa Town Centre Facebook page is where we will showcase what you are now doing. You can also find this email update as well as previous ones on our website: www.bidleamington2022.mystagingwebsite.com.

Best wishes and we look forward to seeing you soon,

Steph & Alison

Business Grants Links – NOW LIVE: 17th November

The link to access the ‘National Restrictions Support Grant’ is now live. This is for businesses that have been forced to close by the Government and include non-essential retail, leisure, personal care, sports facilities and hospitality businesses. A full list can be found on gov.uk.

The link and associated eligibility criteria can be found here (please click).

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For those businesses that are NOT eligible for the Local Restrictions Support Grant (LRSG) such as those who have who have not been forced to close (e.g. dry cleaners), a new Discretionary Grant Scheme is available – called the ‘Additional restrictions grant fund’. The application deadline is Monday 30 November. The eligibility policy is here.

The application details and links to apply can be found here (please click).

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Update – PLEASE ALSO NOTE!

As set out above, two grants are currently available from WDC. This includes the Local Restrictions Support Grant (LRSG) and the Additional restrictions grant (ARG – Part A & B).

Some businesses who have physical properties may find they are eligible for BOTH, so please review the eligibility criteria carefully:

Local Restrictions Support Grant (LRSG)

• Criteria: Local Restrictions Support Grant (LRSG)
• To apply for the LRSG Grant please click here.
• Amount: Varies depending on your rateable value (RV) from £1334 up to £3000.
• The deadline is: Wednesday 2nd December 2020
• This is being offered to businesses who have physical properties that are closed in accordance with government restrictions.

Additional Restrictions Grant (ARG)

• Criteria: Additional restrictions grant (ARG)
• To apply for the ARG Grant please click here.
• The deadline is Monday 30th November 2020
• Amount: £1000.00
• This is being offered to physical businesses that previously received the Small Business Grant Fund (SBGF) or Local Authority Discretionary Fund (LAGF) – and you should apply to Part A.
• Please note, the Small Business Grant Fund (SBGF) was the £10,000 grant offered to businesses who were in receipt of Small Business Rate Relief, back in April 2020. The Local Authority Discretionary Fund (LAGF) was available in July and August to businesses who missed out on other grants. This was extended to include those businesses whose property has an RV above £51,000, who did not receive the £25,000 Retail, Leisure & Hospitality Business Grant (RHLGF) or any other grants for ‘that business’.

Please note, for businesses with an RV of £15,000 and under, this Additional Restrictions Grant (ARG) is only available to those who previously received Small Business Rate Relief. This means you met the criteria at this link – which includes only having one Business Rates liability within England or Wales etc. If you did not receive ‘Small Business Rates relief’ on your property and therefore, received the £10,000 or the £25,000 Retail, Leisure & Hospitality Business Grant (RHLGF), then you are NOT eligible for the Additional Restrictions Grant (ARG).

__________

Please get in touch if you have any issues and we will do our best to support you in finding a solution.

We know that these funds will be welcome but for many, do not cover your costs. With this in mind, we continue to lobby nationally to ensure our member businesses are supported further e.g. seeking an extension to the business rate relief beyond March 2021. We welcome your feedback on this.

Don’t forget to join our Leamington Town Centre Facebook Group if you haven’t already as we regularly post helpful advice and share ideas / support. We will also post updates on the BID Leamington Facebook Page – and the Royal Leamington Spa Town Centre Facebook page is where we will showcase what you are now doing.

We will also be updating you in the coming week on all of our Christmas plans.

Best wishes, Steph & Alison

Grants & HR – Important Dates: 10th November

Please read on for two important updates relating to business grants and the furlough scheme.

Business Grant Update – Applications Open: November 16th

HR Update – Important Deadline: November 13th 

Please see this helpful note below from our HR advisors – Absolute Works. This relates to business owners who have not yet furloughed themselves or a staff member and don’t know whether you might need to going forwards. In this case, it is recommended that an agreement is in place by the end of this week to be prepared in the case furlough is needed in future. Given the change to the flexible furlough scheme, it is also worth checking that any existing furlough agreements are sufficient for the future.

Guidance is being updated regularly so it always pays to check with your HR advisors if you have any questions. Also, if you do not have this support and this presents any questions for you please get in touch.

———Furlough Scheme Update———

We are writing to you to highlight an important deadline in terms of the furlough scheme.

If you intend to utilise the Job Retention Scheme for employees where you have not done so previously you must have an agreement in place where you intend to furlough or flexibly furlough those employees. These agreements can be made retrospectively (having effect from 1 November 2020) but only retrospective agreements put in place up to and including the 13 November 2020 may be relied on for the purposes of a CJRS claim.

What do you need to do?

If you already have in place a furlough agreement for the employees that you have furloughed or intend to furlough between now and the end of the scheme (March 2021) then check whether the agreement requires any amendments or whether your employees require a further letter/ communication to reconfirm their status.

If you do not already have a furlough agreement in place for employees you intend to furlough between now and the end of the scheme (March 2021) this need to be rectified. Please get in touch if you would like some support with this.

Other important things to note

• Employers do not need to place all of their employees on furlough and they can fully furlough employees if they wish. Employees cannot undertake any work for their employer during the hours that the employer records them as being on furlough.
• There is no minimum furlough period. Flexible furlough agreements can last any amount of time. Employees can enter into a flexible furlough agreement more than once.

Employers can:

• Fully furlough employees – this means the employee does no work for the employer
• Flexibly furlough employees – this means employees can work for any amount of time, and any work pattern and claim the grant for the furloughed hours, with reference to hours the employee would usually have worked in that period

Employers should discuss with their staff and make any changes to the employment contract by agreement. When employers are making decisions in relation to the CJRS process, including deciding who to offer furlough to, employment, equality and discrimination laws will apply in the usual way.

To be eligible for the grant, employers must have confirmed to their employee (or reached a collective agreement with a trade union) in writing that they have been furloughed or flexibly furloughed.

Employers must:

• Make sure that the agreement is consistent with employment, equality and discrimination laws
• Keep a written record of the agreement for 5 years
• Keep records of how many hours their employees work and the number of hours they are furloughed (for example, not working), for 6 years

The employee does not have to provide a written response and employers do not need to place all their employees on furlough. Although, it is prudent to at least obtain an acknowledgement from the employee to save any future dispute or misunderstanding.

If you have any queries, or need any support with your HR and Employment Law, please let us know.

——-ENDS ——-

Best wishes,

Steph & Alison

Lockdown 2 – Info, Support & Grants: 2nd November

Following Saturdays announcement of a further lockdown from Thursday, November 5th we know once again you face an array of information, questions, uncertainty and worry. As was the case last time, our resources and energy are entirely focused on supporting local businesses, and we have plans in place to do this.

For now, we have kept this brief as this week will be busy and we will continue to update you further in coming days. Please bookmark the following pages, as this is where we will also be posting regular updates and advice as this evolves:

• BID Leamington Website (this website)
• BID Leamington Facebook Page

Our first priority is to support you, so please get in touch if there is anything you wish to discuss. We have a variety of partners on hand who can help with any HR, furlough, financial or legal questions you may have. Related to the point below, we also offer digital support. In addition to the 80% furlough extension, further business grants have been announced here (para 4) so we have been in contact with Warwick District Council over the weekend to support the process of getting funds moving. We will update businesses as soon as we have any details.

For evening economy businesses, you may find this blog helpful. On the back of a tough summer and Christmas trading, we know the impact of this will be magnified for many and funding support will likely need to go further, so in the days ahead we will be working with local and national partners to understand and lobby for this. Your continued feedback is essential.

Secondly, we are about to launch our Christmas campaign. This will be focused on encouraging people to shop local where they can, and buying from local businesses who are online. To support this we direct customers to our www.loveleamington.com website to find out who is open, online and delivering in Leamington Town Centre. Please take a look. We are happy to link to your website, or Facebook Marketplace, Insta Shop or any online trading platform you use. Please get in touch if you need some support in this area too.

Reflecting this, here are some helpful actions for this week. Please email alison@bidleamington2022.mystagingwebsite.com to let us know if (after Thursday 5^th)…

1. Are you ‘open’? All ‘essential businesses’ will be listed on the Love Leam website homepage.
2. Are you ‘trading online’, offering ‘click and collect’ ‘takeaway’ and/ or ‘delivering’? Please visit www.loveleamington.com … to see if your business is listed here.
3. Get social – and we can help magnify your efforts. Please share your content with us, ‘tag’ us and use the relevant hash-tags. We have over 25,000 followers/ likes across our platforms. Join our Leamington Town Centre Facebook Group. The Royal Leamington Spa Town Centre Facebook page is where we showcase what you are now doing. We have nearly 13,000 followers @LeamingtonGuide and are active on Instagram – Leamington_Town_Centre. Popular Hashtags are #LoveLeam #TasteLeam #LeamDelivers.
4. Don’t forget to tell your customers what you are doing and how much you love them and value their support.
5. Please find attached some social media assets relating to ‘Shop Local’ and ‘Supporting Leam Online’. You are welcome to use these. We do not want Amazon to win.

Finally, we know this is an unsettling time. We are so proud of how hard we have seen businesses work, adapt, re-build and support each other – it’s amazing. However we know this takes its toll on business owners and staff. Wellbeing support for you and your team is available if you need advice, guidance or an ear, so please reach out to us or email business@warwickshire.gov.uk.

This was not the update we hoped for this morning as on balance, October has been a positive month for many. We really were bouncing back – and we will do it again. We have a variety of things planned for Christmas which we will update you on in the coming days and weeks.

For now, please consider the ‘asks’ above and please do not hesitate to pick up the phone. Alison and I are here and will do our best to signpost you to the information you need as it becomes available. You can phone us on 01926 470634 or please email: info@bidleamington2022.mystagingwebsite.com.

We will be in touch again very soon with further information.

Best wishes,

Steph & Alison

GOV.UK Kickstart Scheme Details: 9th September

Kickstart Scheme – Are You Interested? 

A number of businesses have been in touch to find out how we may be able to support the ‘Kickstart’ scheme recently announced by the government. Details can be found here. 

The aim of the Kickstart Scheme is to create new 6-month job placements for young people who are currently on Universal Credit and at risk of long-term unemployment. The job placements should support the participants (young people aged 16-24) to develop the skills and experience they need to find work after completing the scheme.

Funding is available for 100% of the relevant National Minimum Wage for 25 hours a week, plus associated employer National Insurance contributions and employer minimum automatic enrolment contributions. There is also £1,500 per job placement available for setup costs, support and training.

However, critically applications must be for a minimum of 30 job placements. Given most of our members who are interested would not be offering 30 job placements, the government has directed interested businesses to:

• join a group of other employers, nominating a representative for the group to submit the application
• register their interest with existing representatives, such as local authorities, chambers of commerce or trade bodies

The idea is that the ‘representative organisation’ will check that your job placements are eligible for the Kickstart Scheme, and submit the application for funding on your behalf.

We are in contact with local partners who are supporting this, however, to support these discussions we are interested in collating data on how many BID Leamington members would be interested in recruiting and training young people (aged 16-24) via this scheme?

If interested, please read the eligibility criteria, and let us know via info@bidleamington2022.mystagingwebsite.com:

1. How many young people would you be interested in taking on (minimum 6 months)?
2. What the job description / job role would be (a summary is fine for now)?
3. If you can offer the required training and support?  

Please note: in supplying this information we will be sharing it with the Chamber of Commerce. You can also contact the Chamber of Commerce and register for this scheme directly by clicking here. 

The Department of Work & Pensions assessment process itself may take up to 1 month, once the application is submitted – and an application must have a minimum of 30 job placements, including relevant company, job and training / support details to apply, so this is unlikely to be a quick process. Also once approved, recruitment will be via a Jobcentre Plus work coach who will refer candidates. Finally, any new jobs must not replace existing or planned vacancies, or cause existing employees to lose their jobs.

Best wishes and we look forward to seeing you out and about,

Steph & Alison

BID Update – Support, Resources & Projects: 4th September

Hi everyone,

We hope you are well. Please read on to find out about a NEW Grant funding opportunity! for small retail and leisure businesses. Please note this is different to the LEP Growth Hub one we emailed you about last week (and which you may have already heard back).

Other things in this update include:

1. Support for Business Owners and Staff – Heath & Wellbeing
2. Stickers and Posters Still Available
3. BID Recovery Planning & Projects, Invoicing, Highways & Next Steps

1.  Business Owner and Staff Health & Wellbeing

Warwickshire County Council has extended its Employee Assistance Programme (EAP) to support owners and staff in town centre micro and small businesses with their health and wellbeing.

The programme will be available from Tuesday, September 1 to businesses with 10 or fewer employees operating in the towns of Warwickshire who may need help.

This includes access to information, support and guidance (including coaching and counselling where appropriate) on a wide range of topics including work, career, relationships, family, money management, debt and health and wellbeing.

Please get in touch with us or email business@warwickshire.gov.uk if you would like to learn more about this. All enquiries are confidential.

2.  Stickers and Posters Still Available

As well as our floral pavement stickers, we now have posters available. We are happy to drop some in if you specify which ones you need, so just drop us a line.

This includes:

• Inside Instructions (A4 Poster)
• Spa Space – Fill in text (A4 Poster)
• Spa Space – Parade Safely (A4 Poster)
• Plus – floral pavement / window stickers

3.  BID Recovery Planning & Projects, Invoicing, Highways and Next Steps

As always, there is a lot happening …

Projects & Marketing:

The ‘Little Book of Offers’ has just been published featuring 63 offers from local businesses and 4000 of these are going into circulation and preparation are underway for Halloween! We continue to be active on social media – communicating your news and offers to our audience of over 25,000 followers on various platform (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram) so please continue to send or signpost your content. Our various websites also remain a source of valuable local information.

Finally, we were pleased to support The Frontline Project led by Creative Leamington, which includes a mural in Spencer Yard and a website showcasing and celebrating Covid-19 key workers and their stories. This provides a town centre destination for people to visit and reinforces the ongoing challenges. For more information please visit:

• The Frontline Project website: https://www.thefrontlineproject.co.uk/
• The Frontline Project Press release (Please Click here)

Invoicing:

Firstly, in respect to the BID annual invoice distributed in July, we wish to express our thanks to those who have paid. As explained on the invoice, there was an option to differ the payment until October, then begin a payment plan, so you may be contacted in the near further to discuss this. Please do not hesitate to make contact with us to discuss your individual circumstances also. We are very conscious that some businesses are not yet trading and we wish to do everything we can to minimise stress and help businesses get back to business at this time.

Road Closures:

We continue to gather feedback about the road closures and are in regular dialogue with Warwickshire County Council, who is controlling this – so please continue to email us your views or questions. Thank you to the 76 business who have fed back to us already. At this stage we understand the closure will be in place until the end of September, though this is being reviewed in the coming week and we will keep you updated.

Looking Forwards … Footfall and Christmas:

We know times are still strange – for us, today we would normally be on site setting up for the Food & Drink Festival. As you can see in the image below, the two footfall cameras on Parade show visitor numbers are steadily increasing but we have some way to go and remain careful.

We are now beginning to focus on Christmas and welcome any ideas about how we embrace this special time of year in new and innovative ways. We will continue to work closely with the BID Board of Directors and collaborate with local partners, including the Royal Priors, as there has never been a more important time to work together and support each other. We welcome your feedback.

THANK YOU! … as always … we remain inspired by everything we can see you doing to navigate a path forwards.

Don’t forget to join our Leamington Town Centre Facebook Group if you haven’t already. We will also post updates on the BID Leamington Facebook page – and the Royal Leamington Spa Town Centre Facebook page is where we will showcase what you are now doing. You can also find this email update as well as previous ones on our website: www.bidleamington2022.mystagingwebsite.com.

Best wishes and we look forward to seeing you out and about,

Steph & Alison