News
Welsh Economic Resilience Fund – 3rd phase
01 Oct 2020
The Welsh Government has announced the launch of the third phase of its Economic Resilience Fund to support Welsh businesses through the ongoing Coronavirus pandemic. There are no details as yet as to when the funding will be available but an online eligibility checker to allow businesses to determine whether funding is available to them will be launched in the week commencing 5 October.
Unlike the previous two phases the funding for the third phase is split into two distinct pots.
An £80 million package to help businesses to develop and to secure the jobs of their workforce
Subject to meeting the relevant eligibility criteria this element of the package will provide support as follows:
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Micro businesses (employing between 1 and 9 people) will be able to apply for up to £10k on the condition they match this with their own investment of at least 10%;
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SMEs (employing between 10 and 249 people) will be able to apply for up to £150k. Small businesses will be required to match this with their own investment of at least 10% and medium businesses with at least 20% of their own funding;
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Large businesses (employing 250+ people) will be able to apply for up to £200k on the condition they match this with their own investment of at least 50%
£20 million of this package will be ring-fenced to support tourism and hospitality businesses facing challenges as we enter the winter months. There will also be an element of discretion in the fund to enable higher levels of support for micro businesses and SMEs in the tourism and hospitality industries.
A £60m package of support aimed at businesses that have either needed to close or have been impacted by a local lockdown
Subject to meeting eligibility criteria and providing the necessary evidence (at this stage there is no detail as to what evidence will be required):
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A grant of £1,000 will be available to businesses occupying premises with a rateable value up to £12,000, which have seen a material impact on their business as a result of a local restrictions.
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A grant of £1,500 will be available to businesses in the retail, leisure and hospitality sector occupying premises with a rateable value between £12,001 and £51,000, which have seen a material impact on their business as a result of a local restrictions.
5% of the package will available, again subject to meeting eligibility criteria, to provide discretionary grants of £1,500 to businesses that have been materially impacted by a local lockdown but who aren’t registered to pay business rates.
Further detail on all of these packages should be available shortly.
WR Partners comment
Once again the Welsh Government is acting to support businesses affected by the pandemic – it is particularly pleasing to see additional support for the most affected sectors and those businesses directly affected by local lockdowns. The requirement for the businesses applying for the main fund to match some of the funding is new but the amounts involved for smaller is business is proportionately relatively low.
Those business which believe they may be eligible and intend to apply for support should look to act quickly once the eligibility checker is released as experience suggests demand for funds is high and the cash can run out very quickly.
Written by Andrew Tweedie | Partner
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