The number of grants issued to small businesses by Nottingham City Council has now reached £36 million, with 87% of those who have submitted their application having now received their grant.

Business support grants are available for thousands of businesses in Nottingham, including those in receipt of Small Business Rate Relief, Rural Rate Relief, whose businesses work in the retail, hospitality and leisure sectors or whose properties have a rateable value of up to £51,000. These measures were announced by Central Government in March, with payments being made by Nottingham City Council throughout April.

Over £27 million has still not been claimed by eligible businesses, an issue affecting areas across the country and now subject to a national campaign from the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy. Those eligible businesses who have not been in touch so far will be contacted by the council by phone, email and letter to invite them to make an application.

Those submitting applications are urged to carefully fill in the form on the Nottingham City Council Business Support website, as some grant payments have been delayed due to incorrect bank details and other errors made when applying. Anti-fraud checks are in place to stop duplicate payments and fraudulent claims.

Councillor Sam Webster, Portfolio Holder for Finance, Growth and the City Centre at Nottingham City Council, said: “The value of our small businesses to Nottingham’s economy cannot be understated with many being highly valued by local people and of course providing employment across Nottingham.  These support grants will support those businesses as the pandemic continues to pose unprecedented challenges for the country.

“We’ve paid out a huge number of grants to date and we will now focus on making sure every eligible business applies. Our work with partners like Marketing NG, the Chamber of Commerce, BID and Creative Quarter has meant we have been able to support a huge number of businesses but we will not consider this a success until as many businesses as possible in Nottingham are supported by this scheme – please urge those who have not yet applied, or those who you think may not have applied, to do so as soon as possible.”

Small Business Minister Paul Scully said: “Small business owners up and down the country are facing challenges on a scale never seen before and the financial support package we have put in place reflects that.

“I am pleased to see that businesses in Nottingham have already received grants totalling over £36 million, but there is more funding available. I urge any business that believes it is eligible, but has yet to be contacted by their local authority, to make themselves known to them through the council’s website.”