Introduction:
On 21 December 2021, Government announced the introduction of grant support for hospitality and leisure businesses in England. See announcement here:
The scheme provides support to hospitality, leisure and accommodation businesses, in recognition that the rise of the Omicron variant means that some businesses are likely to struggle over the coming weeks.
This support will take the form of a one-off grant funding scheme in the Financial Year 2021-2022. The scheme is called the Omicron
Hospitality and Leisure Grant.
Under the Omicron Hospitality and Leisure Grant scheme, grants of up to £6,000 will be paid to hospitality, leisure and accommodation businesses in England.
The primary principle of the Omicron Hospitality and Leisure Grant scheme is to support businesses that offer in-person services, where the main service and activity takes place in a fixed rate-paying premises, in the hospitality, leisure and accommodation sectors.
Grant income received by a business is taxable. The Omicron Hospitality and Leisure Grant will need to be included as income in the tax return of the business.
In accordance with Government guidance, Local Authorities are required to undertake pre-payment checks for all Omicron Hospitality and Leisure Grant payments. These checks are required to be undertaken before any payments are issued to businesses. This requirement is not limited to new applicants and should look at both the company and the company’s bank account.
The Government, and the Council, will not accept deliberate manipulation and fraud. Any business caught falsifying their records to gain additional grant money will face prosecution and any funding issued will be recovered, as will any grants paid in error.
What you will receive: HOSPITALITY, ACCOMMODATION, LEISURE BUSINESSES
The amount to be paid will be determined by the rateable value of the property for business rates purposes. There are 3 rates of grant payments as detailed below:-
Rateable Value
|
Amount
|
Exactly £15,000 or under
|
£2,667
|
Over £15,000 and less than £51,000
|
£4,000
|
Exactly £51,000 or over
|
£6,000
|
Eligibility:
The Council will administer the Omicron Hospitality and Leisure Grant scheme in accordance with the Government guidance that has been issued to all Local Authorities.
- The Omicron Hospitality and Leisure Grant scheme is for business on the ratings list only.
- The Omicron Hospitality and Leisure Grant is a one-off grant.
- The Omicron Hospitality and Leisure Grant scheme is effective from 30 December 2021
- The business is recorded on the Councils Non Domestic Rates records as the ratepayer, or business liable for Non Domestic Rates on 30 December 2021.
- Business must have been trading, engaged in business activity on 30 December 2021.
- Examples of eligible Hospitality, accommodation, and leisure businesses for the purpose of the Omicron Hospitality and Leisure Grant scheme, as per Government guidance are set out in the table below.
Support Type
|
Types of businesses
|
Hospitality
|
Food courts
Pub restaurants / Public houses
Wine bars
|
Roadside restaurants
Restaurants
Cafes
|
Support Type
|
Types of businesses
|
Leisure
|
Casinos and gambling clubs
Cinemas
Museum and art galleries
Stately homes and historic houses
Theatres
Wedding venue
Events venues
Night clubs & discotheques
Arenas
|
Concert halls
Amusement arcades
Soft play centre or areas
Indoor riding centres
Clubs & institutions
Village hall & scot huts, cadet huts etc
Tourist attractions
Theme Parks
|
Support Type
|
Types of businesses
|
Accommodation
|
Caravan parks
Caravan site and pitches
Chalet parks
Coaching inns
Country house hotels
Guest & Boarding houses
Hostels
Hotels
Lodges
|
Holiday apartment, cottages or bungalows
Campsites
Boarding Houses
Canal boats or other vessels
B&Bs
Catered holiday homes
Holiday homes
|
Exclusions to Omicron Hospitality and Leisure Grant funding
The Council will administer the Omicron Hospitality and Leisure Grant scheme in accordance with the Government guidance that has been issued to all Local Authorities.
- Businesses that are not in the ratings system will not be eligible to receive funding under this scheme.
- Businesses that have already received grant payments the equal the maximum subsidy allowance will not be eligible to receive funding.
- Businesses that are in administration, insolvent or where a striking-off notice has been made, are not eligible for funding under this scheme.
- Examples of excluded Hospitality, accommodation, and leisure businesses for the purpose of the Omicron Hospitality and Leisure Grant scheme, as per Government guidance are set out in the table below.
- Business excluded from the Omicron Hospitality and Leisure Grant scheme can submit an application to the Council to be considered for support under the Councils Additional Restriction Grant scheme
Hospitality
|
Types of businesses EXCLUDED from this scheme
|
|
Food kiosks
Business whose main service is a food takeaway
|
|
Leisure
|
Types of businesses EXCLUDED from this scheme
|
|
All retail businesses
Coach tour operators
Tour operators
Dance Studios
Fitness Studios
Sports Courts
Swimming Pools
Golf Courses
|
Gyms and Sports businesses where physical training is conducted on an individual or group basis. |
Accommodation
|
Types of businesses EXCLUDED from this scheme
|
|
Private dwellings
Education accommodation
Residential family centres
Beach huts
|
Residential homes
Care homes
|
A copy of the Government guidance issued to Local Authorities in relation to the Omicron Hospitality and Leisure Grant scheme is available here:
In line with Government guidance, the Council are required to share data from your application with the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS). The BEIS privacy notice, setting out how BEIS will handle personal data across all COVID-19 business grant schemes, can be found here:
Data may be shared with other enforcement agencies for the prevention and detection of crime.