SME Recovery Grant
The Government has made £20m of funding available to boost small businesses to recover from the Coronavirus pandemic. Now more than ever small businesses need to know how much cash their business needs to survive, what strategies and plans they will put into place and the actions that are important to recover from the impacts of Covid-19.
Why not let Valued be the one to deliver these services to your business as the great news is, the grants can cover our fees for our services.
How much is the SME Recovery Grant?
It’s funded by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) so small businesses can access grants of between £1,000 – £3,000 (up to £5,000 in exceptional circumstances) for specialist advice.
There is no obligation for businesses to contribute financially as the grant is fully funded.
First come, first served
Given the current state of the economy, the scheme is guaranteed to be very popular. Therefore, funding is extremely limited.Expressions of interest (EoI) should be made as soon as possible after the scheme opens. We believe that this will be 10:30 am on 15th September 2020.
There are no waiting list so decisions will be made on a first come, first served basis.
Please note that the gateway will close when the expression of interest (EoI) limit has been reached.You can find your local LEP details here.
If successful, how long will the business have to wait to receive the grant?
Grant payments will not be made until up to 10 weeks after the purchase of the item or service the business has paid and claimed for.
Furthermore, the business will be paid upon production of an invoice for the service.
The details….Who is eligible for this grant?
As always, the devil is in the detail so as an example to be eligible for this grant your business:
- Must be a small to medium-sized business
- Needs to have been negatively impacted by COVID-19
- Must have the ability to survive following the impact of COVID-19
- Staff headcount must be below 250 Employees
- Must have a balance sheet of below €43million
- Must have a turnover of below €50million
If the business has received state aid in the last 3 years the total should not be in excess of €200,000. Businesses exceeding this level of state aid funding will not be eligible.
What expenditure is eligible?
The grant is available to help SMEs access one-to-one specialist advice to address their immediate needs. The grant must cover 100% of the cost of the service or product and cannot be used to part-fund expenditure.
Examples of eligible expenditure that you could potentially provide them yourselves:
- The introduction of new technology (hardware and software) – Valued can help you with this.
- Review of the business strategy, including strategic and business planning and cashflow forecasting – Valued can also help you with this
- Coaching and mentoring in leadership and management development / Change management
- Developing or revising marketing/digital strategies to reach new markets
- Rebuilding a viable business model
- Skills analysis and development plans
- Employee engagement, welfare and wellbeing
What will you need for your expression of interest (EoI)?
Each LEP has its own guidance, start and close date. For example, here is a link to the North East Growth Hub website giving you all the detail you need with their scheme opening on 15th September at 10:30 am You can find your local LEP details here.
How will businesses be assessed?
Key eligibility checks will also take the following into account:
- Their potential to respond/adapt/strengthen from the impact of COVID-19
- The ability to identify opportunities to rebuild following the impact of COVID-19
- The ability to deliver within the timescales available (one month)
Due to the high volume expected, it may take up to 10 working days for full application forms to be sent. LEP or Growth Hub staff will not be able to provide an update on the status of your application.
For more detailed information check the LEP Growth Hub in your area.
This article first appeared on our old website.