English councils given more time to provide remaining £1bn in grants to businesses

Councils in England have been given an extra month to hand out the remaining funds from one of the government's grant schemes for businesses impacted by coronavirus restrictions.

According to The Times, the Department for Business said £1bn of the £2bn provided to local authorities for the Additional Restrictions Grant (ARG) scheme has yet to be spent.

The ARG was set up last October and topped up earlier this year.

Local authorities originally had until 30 June to give out the funding but the government updated its guidance last week and extended the deadline until 30 July to reflect the delay in removing all restrictions in England.

Councils have the freedom to determine the eligibility for the grants but the government is encouraging them to support:

• businesses severely impacted by restrictions but not eligible for the Restart Grant scheme which is for firms paying business rates.

• businesses from sectors that remain closed or severely impacted, even if they have already had a Restart Grant. That includes the travel and tourism sector, wedding industries, nightclubs, theatres, events industries, wholesalers, English language schools, breweries, freelance and mobile businesses including caterers, events, hair, beauty and wedding related businesses.

If you think you're eligible, you can find details for your local council here.

The latest coronavirus support information

We are keeping you updated on the latest information on how to access the government's coronavirus business support here. You can also find advice on Enterprise Nation's coronavirus business advice hub. Follow Enterprise Nation on Twitter too for updates.