City of Wolverhampton Council is urging businesses to act fast as the applications deadline for a number of existing grant schemes has been set by Government for Wednesday, March 31.

To further help businesses a new dedicated Council phone support team guiding people through the online application form, will be available to connect with via the below business support line number from Monday (March 15).

More than £62million has so far been paid out by the Council to city businesses throughout the coronavirus pandemic.

Eligibility criteria and how to access the online application process for all Wolverhampton business support grants can be found at www.wolverhampton.gov.uk/businessgrants. Businesses are urged to ensure they have all the correct evidence to hand before starting their application.

If you are unsure which grant you should apply for or have a general query, you can get in touch with the Council by emailing business.grants@wolverhampton.gov.uk or calling the business support phoneline on 01902 290242 between 9am and 5pm from Monday to Thursday or from 9am to 4.30pm on Fridays.

Business are also urged to ensure they have applied for grants from all the periods of lockdown and local restrictions they may be eligible for.

Councillor Stephen Simkins, Cabinet Member for City Economy, said: “I would urge Wolverhampton businesses not to miss out on these vital business grants and get in quick before some of them deadline at the end of this month. They can check what they are eligible for simply by visiting the website, where they can also apply.

“As a council, during the whole pandemic we have paid out tens of millions of pounds to thousands of eligible businesses so far to help them.

“We appreciate this is an extremely difficult time for businesses and these payments are our priority.

“Working within Government guidelines, we will ensure these new grants get allocated swiftly as our city looks to recover from the financial impact of Covid-19.”

If you have already made a recent application for a business grant then you can use this information and evidence as the basis for any subsequent application. 

All of the grants are subject to State Aid rules and are treated as taxable income.

The Government has also announced new ‘restart’ grants. The scheme will make non-essential retail businesses eligible for grants of up to £6,000 per premises to help them reopen and begin trading safely. Hospitality, hotels, leisure, personal care and gyms, set to reopen later with further restrictions in place, can access up to £18,000, depending on their rateable value. Local authorities will administer and distribute the grants in their areas from April 2021.

The latest Government information on business grants and support can be viewed at https://bit.ly/32H66MX