Lancaster City Council Business Grant Advance

Lancaster City Council (LCC) have announced that they have now opened the application process to apply for the small businesses grant. The grant of £10,000 is open to businesses which already receive Small Business Rates Relief (SBRR) or Rural Rates Relief (RRR). The grant is yet to be provided by the Government to local authorities and is not expected until early April 2020, however LCC said that they acknowledge some businesses may suffer immediate financial difficulties and are therefore offering an advance of part of the grant amounting to £2,500. This will then be deducted from the full grant payment you will receive in April 2020.

In the application process you will need to confirm that:

• your business qualified for Small Business Rates Relief on 11 March 2020 (the form asks for your business rates reference number so that we can check eligibility)

• your business premises does not relate to personal use (storage, private stables, beach huts and moorings) and is not being used just for storage. We will ask you to confirm the main use of your premises

• you recognise that any advance is in respect of the Government’s Business Support Grants Fund and that any advance will be subtracted from your eventual entitlement

• the council reserves the right to recover any advance where it is subsequently confirmed that your business did not meet the qualification criteria.

You will also need to provide the following information:

• Applicant details – name and D.O.B of ratepayer

• Business details – name, address, phone, email, VAT no. (if applicable) and company registration No. (if applicable)

• Business unique property reference number (UPRN) – this can be found on your rates bill

• Business rates account number

• Description of use of premises

• Bank details (the account which you wish the grant to be paid into)

To apply please follow this link:

http://www.lancaster.gov.uk/sites/business/business-support-grants-fund