Financial support for Moray businesses affected by continued level 3 restrictions

Moray Council will administer the Moray Local Restrictions Grant, which eligible businesses do not need to apply for.

Businesses that previously received financial support through the Strategic Framework Business Fund (SFBF) or the Small Accommodation Providers Paying Council Tax Support Fund will be awarded grants for up to a two-week period of up to £1,500, depending on Rateable Value.

Sectors being supported include hospitality; accommodation providers; sports, leisure and entertainment venues; and tourist attractions.

Moray Council will also offer discretionary funding to those involved in the supply chain to hospitality and tourism businesses. The criteria and further details of this will be published early next week.

Moray Council leader, Cllr Graham Leadbitter, said: “We understand the news of staying in level 3 a bit longer could give cause for concern for a number of businesses who were looking forward to opening up further from Monday.

“However, our team will distribute the financial support available as quickly as possible and, as applications are not required for the funding, we expect to process these by Friday 21 May.

“We’ll provide further details of additional discretionary funding next week and we thank our business community in advance for continuing to comply with the level 3 covid restrictions for just a bit longer.”

Full details are available online.

Eligibility

To be eligible for financial support through this fund you must operate a business in Moray that is impacted by the Scottish Government’s decision to retain Protection Level 3 Restrictions in the area. Specifically your business must be:

• required to remain closed at Protection Level 3 but would have otherwise have been permitted to open on Monday 17 May had Moray Council moved to Protection Level 2. Nightclubs and softplay centres are therefore not eligible for support through this fund.
• required to continue to modify its operations in accordance with the Regulations in place at Protection Level 3.
• an accommodation business or visitor attraction. These are sectors which, despite not being required to close or specifically modify their operations as a result of Regulations, are impacted by the travel restrictions in place at Protection Level 3.

Only businesses that have previously received financial support through the Strategic Framework Business Fund or the Small Accommodation Providers Paying Council Tax Support Fund are eligible for a grant through this scheme.

Businesses that have not previously received support through either of these schemes but otherwise meet the eligibility criteria are encouraged to apply to Moray Council’s Local Authority Discretionary Fund.