Hammersmith and Fulham Council is accepting applications for the third round of its Additional Restrictions Grant (ARG).
Sponsoring Agency: Hammersmith and Fulham Council
Type of Fund: Grant
Deadline Available: Available
Deadline Date (mm/dd/yyyy): 05/14/2021
Size of the Fund: Less than USD $50,000
Hammersmith and Fulham Council is accepting applications for the third round of its Additional Restrictions Grant (ARG).
This grant will be available to micro and small businesses trading in the borough which are excluded from the Local Restrictions Grant schemes.
The ARG grant is aimed at helping businesses to pay their fixed costs during the national lockdown restrictions from November 2020 to April 2021. Self-employed people who have received Self-Employment Income Support Scheme (SEISS) payments are now eligible for this round.
Previous eligible applicants from the first and second ARG rounds do not need to apply for this round as they will receive a further top-up payment. They will contact you directly by email to request some documentation from you to make this payment by the end of May 2021.
If you are still waiting for the outcome of your second round application, there is also no need to apply for this third round and we apologise for the delay. All eligible applicants will also receive atop- up payment.
All previous unsuccessful applicants from the first and second round but who now meet the new criteria will be reassessed. There is no need to reapply.
This grant is available to support:
• Businesses that were not legally required to close during the lockdown but were severely impacted by restrictions.
• Businesses that were required to close during the lockdown but are not registered for business rates.
• Businesses that can demonstrate a decrease in income of at least 30% from November 2020 to March 2021.
How much will my business get?
The amount you get depends on the rateable value of your business property if it has a rateable value, or, if it doesn't have a rateable value, the amount you get will depend on your annual rental costs. Your overall grant will also take into consideration loss of income, turnover and what other financial support you may have received to date.
• If your rateable value or annual rent is £15,000 or less you will receive a grant between £1,500 and £3,000.
• If your rateable value or annual rent is between £15,000 – £51,000 you will receive a grant of £2,000 – £4,000
• If your rateable value or annual rent is £51,000 or more you will receive a grant of £3,000 – £6,000.
If the council considers a grant will make a significant impact to support a viable business that can demonstrate a loss of income a further discretionary award of up to £10,000 may be provided. This includes high growth and supply chain businesses, those who are in exceptional hardship or those who have benefited less from other government grants. The maximum possible payment is £13,000.
They will assess all correctly completed applications by 18 June 2021.
Eligibility Criteria
• Businesses must be an active trading company or sole trader. A business is considered to be trading if it is engaged in business activity such as carrying on a trade or profession, or buying and selling goods or services in order to generate turnover.
• Businesses must be able to demonstrate a loss of income of at least 30% between November 2020 to April 2021 due to lockdown restrictions.
• New businesses which do not have historical accounts and opened at the end of 2019 and before the first lockdown, can provide their budget projections for the April 2020 to March 2021 period to support their evidence of a 30% loss. These projections should be supplied as an attachment in a separate email to: [email protected]k with their grant reference number clearly highlighted in the subject line. All businesses receive a grant reference number when they submit their application.
• Businesses must supply all the requested evidence to support their application. The council cannot pay your grant until your application has gone through all of the financial checks. Please ensure you fill out the application correctly and send the evidence to support your claim as required.
• Many applications in the first and second rounds of funding did not provide sufficient evidence which slowed down the process significantly with the grants team having to chase grant applicants for further detail. Please be aware that for this round they will be processing applications which have submitted the correct evidence first. If you have not provided adequate evidence, your application will be delayed and may not be processed.
• Businesses must be COVID compliant and the details of successful applicant will be shared with regulatory services which will check for any history of non-compliance before any payment will be made.
The following businesses can apply for this grant:
• Businesses from the following sectors and other businesses that may have been severely impacted by restrictions but are not eligible for the Restart Grant scheme. This may include but not limited to:
o businesses that supply. retail, hospitality, arts, night-time economy, leisure and events sector,
o businesses in high growth sectors (science, tech, creative industries),
o group travel and tour operators, other tourism businesses (including B&Bs and event industry suppliers),
o wholesalers, English language schools, breweries, nurseries,
o freelance and mobile businesses (including caterers, events, hair, beauty and wedding related businesses), and childcare providers.
• Businesses outside the business rates system, which are effectively forced to close – for example market traders or service providers.
• Self-employed people including those who have applied for SEISS, for example taxi drivers, childminders, driving instructors, education tutors and tradespeople (plumber, electrician, plasterer etc.).
• Businesses that were eligible for LRSG but missed the 31 March 2021 deadline.
• Market traders who trade in the borough at least 2 days per week.
• Eligible businesses with a turnover of at least £10,000 per year.
• Home based businesses which have significant fixed costs.
More information at: https://www.lbhf.gov.uk/business/coronavirus-covid-19-business-advice/covid-19-business-grants/additional-restrictions-grant-arg
