Darlington Borough Council is working hard to process grants to small businesses to help them meet the financial challenges faced as a result of COVID19.
The grants are issued on behalf of the government in line with their criteria. All businesses that are due a grant have been written to with a request for their banking details for payment the grants. It is anticipated that the grants will provide £23m of support to small businesses in Darlington.
Since the grant was announced the council have received a total of 1,185 applications for Small Business Grants. 350 grants have already been paid with a total value of £3.875 million, 400 have been processed and passed for payment, totalling £4.270million.
There are 350 grants being processed. 60 are outstanding and waiting to be looked at. 25 applications have been turned down because they do not meet the government criteria.
Councillor Heather Scott, Leader of the Council said:
“These are very challenging times for small businesses and I am glad the Government has provided funding for these grants. I am incredibly proud of how the Council staff have worked very hard to get the payments out as quickly as possible.”
Eligible businesses are those that:
- are eligible for Small Business Rate Relief or
- are in the in the retail, hospitality and leisure sectors and have a rateable value less than £51,000