Council's £5m help plan for county’s businesses
C ou n c i l b o s s e s i n C ou nty Durham are poised to invest £5m to help businesses recover from the coronavirus pandemic.
The council looks set to roll out a grant scheme which would provide up to £40,000 in financial help to companies, to help them implement recovery plans to overcome the impacts of the virus.
The Durham Business Recovery Grant Scheme would support more than 880 firms and have the potential to safeguard over 1,760 jobs, across the county.
The scheme goes before the council’s Cabinet for approval next week.
Cllr Carl Marshall, the authority’s cabinet member for economic regeneration, said:
“We fully recognise that coronavirus and the restrictions that have come with it have been devastating for businesses.
“We have tried to do everything we can to support companies by processing tens of millions of pounds in various grants since the pandemic began as quickly as possible and we will continue to do so with the latest lockdown grants for the retail, hospitality and leisure sectors announced by the Chancellor.
“We are now delighted, subject to Cabinet approval, to be in a position to roll out our own Business Recovery Grants which will make a real difference for more than 880 businesses in all sectors by enabling them to progress their recovery plans and potentially safeguard in excess of 1,760 jobs.”
A report to the meeting – next Wednesday – sets out how £3m would come from the council’s own General Fund resources, with £2m being made available from the authority’s allocation from the government’s Additional Restrictions Support Grant.