Covid-19 support grants for businesses

Eligibility criteria

To be eligible for the grant, your business must be:

• rate-paying
• in the non-essential retail, hospitality, accommodation, leisure, personal care or gym sectors
• trading on 1 April 2021

Payment amount

If your business is eligible, you'll receive a single grant payment of:

Strand 1 - support for non essential retail premises

Strand 2 - support for businesses within hospitality, accommodation, leisure, personal care and gym business premises 

Businesses not covered by the scheme 

You cannot get funding if your business:

• is in administration, insolvent or has been struck off the Companies House register
• has exceeded the permitted subsidy allowance

On 18 March we agreed to enhance our scheme to provide one off grant payments to support mobile and home-based businesses that operate in the hospitality, accommodation and leisure sectors or its supply chain, or those providing in person or face to face services, which have been significantly impacted by the restrictions and have fixed monthly business costs. We are also now accepting applications from driving instructors who were previously added to the scheme.

Eligibility criteria - mobile and home based businesses

To be eligible for the grant, your business must be able to:

• Demonstrate fixed business-related costs of at least £100 a month, these must be integral to the running of the business and not include personal salary costs or rent / mortgage costs
• Evidence that the business provides the majority of the applicant's income (over 50%)
• Demonstrate that the business is within the hospitality, accommodation or leisure (HAL) sector, is in the HAL supply chain or provides in-person, face to face services
• Demonstrate that you have been severely impacted by local and/or national restrictions
• Evidence you were trading on 18 September 2020 and
• Demonstrate that you have not received or are eligible for support under the Local Restrictions Support Grant or the current Additional Restrictions Grant funding

Payment amount - mobile and home based businesses

If your business is eligible, you'll receive:

Eligibility criteria - driving instructors

To be eligible for the grant, your business must be able to:

• Demonstrate that you are a Driver Vehicle and Standards Agency Licensed driving instructor as at 18 September 2020, or a new licensee up to 31 December 2020
• Resident in the Durham County Council area

Payment amount - driving instructors

If your business is eligible, you'll receive a one-off payment of £1,000.

How to apply

You can Apply for a mobile, home-based business or driving instructor Covid-19 business grant online, the scheme will be reviewed on 30 April 2021. 

Businesses affected by national lockdown from 16 February 2021 to 31 March 2021

Also called Local Restrictions Support Grant (Closed)

Businesses required to close 

The government has set out which businesses should be closed and which ones can remain open during national lockdown. If your business is required to close its main service, in accordance with Government requirements, you are eligible to receive a grant through this scheme.

You may also be eligible for this grant if the main part of your business is closed but you have changed the nature of your business. For example you are now providing a 'click and collect' or takeaways rather than in-person service, such as a cafe, bar or restaurant.

If you are supplier to a business that's required to close and this has had a severe impact on your business, you may also be eligible.

If you have claimed support previously, we will contact you. You do not need to make a new claim for support. You only need to make a claim if you have not claimed any Covid support previously.

Payment amount

If your business is eligible you'll receive grant payments to cover the periods below:

If your business is not the registered occupier of a rated premises, for example you are in a shared space, but you've still been required to close as a result of the national lockdown, you can still apply for these grants if you meet the other eligibility criteria that applies. These discretionary grants will be funded through the Additional Restrictions Grant funding.

Businesses not covered by the scheme

If your businesses can remain open in line with government guidelines but you've chosen to close, you are not be eligible for this support.

If your business is not the registered occupier of a rated premises, for example you are in a shared space, but you've still been required to close as a result of the national lockdown, you can still apply for these grants if you meet the other eligibility criteria that applies. These discretionary grants will be funded through the Additional Restrictions Grant funding.

If you operate your business from home you're also not eligible (with the exception of registered Bed and Breakfasts (B&Bs) but not AirBnBs).

Service and Supply Chain Businesses

This scheme is aimed at businesses that have not been required to close, but as a result of the closure of businesses in the hospitality, leisure and accommodation sectors, income has been significantly impacted. This includes food suppliers to restaurants, hotels, cafes or leisure venues. These discretionary grants are funded through the Additional Restrictions Grant funding.

Payment amount

If your business is eligible you'll receive grant payments to cover the periods below:

If your business is not the registered occupier of a rated premises, for example you are in a shared space, but you've still been required to close as a result of the national lockdown, you can still apply for these grants if you meet the other eligibility criteria that applies. 

Applications for 16 February - 31 March must be received no later than 31 May 2021, when this scheme will close.

The Durham Business Recovery Grant is a £5million fund to help County Durham businesses to recover from the effects of Covid-19. For full details and eligibility visit Apply for a Durham Business Recovery Grant.