Round 1 of the additional restrictions grant closed for applications at 11.59pm on 8 January 2021.
Applications for round 1 are now being processed and all applicants will be contacted with the outcome of their application by the end of February 2021.
Round 2 of the additional restrictions grant will be launched on this page soon and announced in the Hackney Business Network newsletter.
The eligibility criteria below relates to round 1 and is for information only, this will be updated when round 2 is launched.
Round 1 criteria
This grant scheme is for micro and small businesses in Hackney that were legally required to close between 5 November and 2 December 2020 (but are not business rate account holders) and for those businesses that were not legally required to close but have been severely impacted by the restrictions put in place to control the spread of Covid-19.
If your business was legally required to close during the national lockdown period between 5 November and 2 December and you are a business rates account holder you should apply for a Local Restrictions Grant (Open) Addendum grant and not this grant.
The additional restrictions grant is now available for applications until Friday 8 January 2021.
Eligible businesses
The additional restrictions grant is a discretionary scheme. In order to qualify for the fund you must meet the following criteria:
- your business was legally required to close during the lockdown period between 5 November – 2 December 2020 but you are not a business rate account holder; or
- your business was not legally required to close between 5 November – 2 December 2020 but has been severely impacted by the restrictions put in place to prevent the spread of Covid-19
For those businesses in the second category we encourage and will prioritise applications from businesses who supply the retail, hospitality and leisure sectors, businesses in the events sector, market traders (who are registered market traders with the London Borough of Hackney), and Ofsted registered nurseries and childminders.
Who can apply
To apply your business must meet all of the following criteria:
- your business is based in the London Borough of Hackney operating from a commercial or domestic premises* or a London Borough of Hackney market trading pitch
- *If your business is operating from a domestic premises then you will be asked to confirm in the application form that this was your usual mode of operating prior to the Covid-19 pandemic. If you are working from home as a result of Covid-19 but your business would normally operate from a commercial premises, then please provide your commercial premises address in Hackney on your application form
- your business is a micro or small business as defined in the Companies Act 2006 (ie your business must have at least two of the following; not more than 50 employees, a turnover of not more than £10.2 million and a balance sheet total of not more than £5.1m)
- your business must have been trading on the 4 November 2020, the day before the national lockdown came into effect
- your business is not in administration, insolvent or has a striking off notice made against it
- your business was legally required to close between 5 November and 2 December 2020 but you are not a business rate account holder; or your business was not legally required to close between 5 November – 2 December 2020 but has been severely impacted by the restrictions put in place to prevent the spread of Covid-19. For businesses in the second category you must demonstrate in your application form how your business has been severely impacted as a result of the lockdown restrictions
- your business is not eligible for the local restrictions support grant (closed) addendum grant
- the grant will not result in your business exceeding the maximum levels of State Aid. Grant payments count towards the total de minimis State Aid that you are permitted to receive over a 3-year period which is €200,000. If you have reached that threshold, you may still be eligible for funding under the Covid-19 Temporary Framework. The limit for the Temporary Framework is €800,000
- your business was not an undertaking in difficulty (within the meaning of Article 2 (18) of the General Block Exemption Regulation) on 31 December 2019
The additional restrictions grant cannot be used to support wages or labour costs.
How much funding you will receive
For business rates account holders:
- businesses with a rateable value of exactly £15,000 or under on the date of the commencement of the national restrictions: £1334 per 28-day qualifying restriction period
- businesses with a rateable value over £15,000 and less than £51,000 on the date of the commencement of the national restrictions: £2000 per 28-day qualifying restriction period
- businesses with a rateable value of exactly £51,000 or above on the commencement date of the national restrictions: £3,000 per 28-day qualifying restriction period
For businesses without a business rates account who don’t pay business rates, the amount of grant will be based the size of your business, using the number of full time equivalent employees, excluding the business owner/owners:
- businesses with 0 employees: up to £1,334 per 28-day qualifying restriction period
- businesses with 1- 4 employees: up to £2,000 per 28-day qualifying restrictions period
- businesses with 5-49 employees: up to £3000 per 28-day qualifying restrictions period
Evidence needed
Before you begin your application form please ensure you have all of the following evidence available as electronic or scanned documents ready to upload.
If you don’t provide these documents then your application is unlikely to be successful.
- 3 months business bank statements from September- November 2020 (inclusive): Please provide your business bank statements from September- November 2020 showing the account holder name and address, bank name, sort code and account number and all transactions. The account details in the bank statements must correspond with the bank account details provided in the application form. If you cannot provide 3 months bank statements you must provide your November 2020 business bank statement
- business rates bill: If applicable you must provide a copy of your latest London Borough of Hackney business rates bill
- business premises lease, rental agreement, mortgage statement or market trading licence: You must provide a copy of your business premises lease, rental agreement, mortgage statement, or London Borough of Hackney market trading licence. If you are unable to provide this you must upload another form of evidence setting out the ongoing fixed costs that your business has to pay (eg utility bills, storage fees)
- confirmation of the amount of employees in your business: For businesses who employ staff you must provide a copy of your most up to date business payroll record showing the number of people (full-time equivalents) employed by your business. If a payroll record is not available please provide another form of evidence which verifies the number of people employed by your business
- Photographic ID: Please provide one current form of photo identification such as a current passport or driving licence
- HMRC self-assessment tax return: If you are a sole trader or are self-employed you must provide a copy of your latest HMRC self-assessment tax return
- evidence of the impact of the 5 November- 2 December lockdown on your business: In the application form you will be asked to provide written evidence of the impact of the lockdown on your business. Your answer should set out if you were open or closed during this period, if you were able to trade online, the financial scale of Coronavirus related losses during this period (for example % drop in sales, loss of income in £s), and the ongoing fixed costs your business has to pay (for example utility bills, storage fees)
After you’ve applied
The additional restrictions grant is available for applications until Friday 8 January 2021. We will process applications in January and businesses will be notified of the outcome of your application as soon as possible.
Applications will be determined in the order that they are received. In determining eligibility for a grant the Council will consider the scale of financial need and hardship experienced by businesses taking into account your business type and sector, the impact that the national lockdown has had on your business, and the ongoing fixed costs that your business has to pay.
There is no appeals process for decisions made.