Neath Port Talbot start-ups urged to apply for part of five million pound business fund
30 June 2020
New businesses across Neath Port Talbot are being urged to apply for grants under the Welsh Government’s £5m start-up fund for new businesses dealing with the severe impact of coronavirus.
The fund is now open to grant applications on a first-come-first-served basis for up to 2,000 new businesses across Wales.
Applicants need to submit their details as a matter of urgency as Neath Port Talbot Council, in common with other councils across Wales which are involved in administration of the fund in their local areas, have only been given sufficient funding to cover a limited number of eligible claims.
Under the new fund, grants of £2,500 each will support start-up firms which were established between 1st April 2019 and 1st March 2020, helping them to continue trading through the pandemic.
To be eligible for the start-up grant, businesses must:
• Have not received funding from the Welsh Government’s Economic Resilience Fund or the non-domestic rates grant.
• Have been set up between the 1 April 2019 and 1 March 2020 and have not qualified for the UK Government’s Self Employment Income Support Scheme.
• Have less than £50,000 turnover.
• Have experienced a drop in turnover of more than 50% between April and June 2020.
Applicants will need to submit a two-page application form and self-declaration supported by evidence.
The Start Up Grant will be administered by local authorities and accessed through the Economic Resilience Fund eligibility checker on the Business Wales website https://fundchecker.businesswales.gov.wales/.
Decisions on applications will be made based on the information provided in application forms submitted by businesses, associated evidence and information checks that are conducted from other business data sources.
The purpose of the grant is to support newly created businesses in Wales with immediate cash flow support to help them survive the economic consequences of the Covid-19 outbreak.
The grant seeks to complement other Covid-19 response measures to support businesses, social enterprises and charitable organisations in Wales.
Neath Port Talbot Council’s Finance and Economic Development Teams have already distributed more than £27m in Welsh Government grants to businesses across Neath Port Talbot in the current health emergency.