Our town has had great support during pandemic

✒ I HAD no idea of the amount of financial support for business and people in Cheltenham – it is amazing.

The Budget means that total funding for Cheltenham to tackle the Covid-19 pandemic now exceeds £300 million (including loans).

I’m sure there will be readers who say it is not enough, and the Government could do more. However, this level of support deserves recognition.

» £42m in grants for small businesses such as pubs, hairdressers, shops and cafes

» £29.1m in SEISS grants for 3,700 selfemployed workers

» An estimated £74m for the furlough scheme

» An estimated £10.8m grants for

Restart » £119m in guarantees on 2,348 Government-backed loans

» £30m for 12-month rates relief for retail/hospitality/leisure industry

» An extra c.£7.5m for another threemonth rates relief to June 2022 plus c.£15m for two-thirds business rate cut until April 2022

» £2.5m to support Cheltenham’s arts institutions, including the Everyman Theatre, Cheltenham Trust and the Cheltenham Festivals

» £321k for Cheltenham community groups, including 4th Cheltenham Boys Brigade, Family Space in Hester’s Way, and Cheltenham Housing Aid Centre.

» £220K for Leisure at Cheltenham and the Prince of Wales Stadium

» Over £1m for discounted meals in the Eat Out to Help Out scheme » £1.8m in other additional funding assigned to Cheltenham Borough Council.

The above totals around £332m. There has also been an extension of the initial six-month VAT cut to 5% for hospitality, now due to last until the end of September, meaning an approximate £18m tax cut for Cheltenham businesses.

Moreover, around £3.5m has been pumped into welfare support in Cheltenham, boosting Universal Credit by £20 a week for those in need.

As well as this, Cheltenham has benefited from a share of almost £60m in funding assigned to Gloucestershire County Council to tackle Covid-19.