Following the latest Government advice relating to the global outbreak of COVID-19, Make It York has taken the decision to implement a number of measures to ensure the safety of our staff, residents, Shambles Market traders and visitors.
- As of 18th March until further notice, the Make It York team will be working remotely. The team will be contactable by email and will continue to provide support to members and businesses across the city. All enquiries regarding the business support available can be emailed through to business@makeityork.com and any Visit York membership queries can be sent to membership@makeityork.com.
- The Visitor Information Centre will temporarily close from 5PM on Tuesday 17th March 2020 until further notice. An email service will still be available to customers via info@visityork.org and the visityork.org website will continue to be updated with the latest information.
- Shambles Market will temporarily close as of 5PM on Tuesday 17th March 2020 until further notice. All traders will be contacted by the team with further details over the coming days and the york-markets@makeityork.com email will continue to be monitored during this time for any trader queries. With the closure of the market, all licensed stall holders will not incur charges during this time.
We understand this is a time of unprecedented uncertainty for businesses across all sectors and Make It York are committed to continue to work with partners at City of York Council and York BID to provide support and guidance during this time.
Please see below the latest guidance outlining what government measures are available to support public services, people and businesses through this period of disruption caused by COVID-19.
The Make It York team will continue to be in regular contact with our members, traders and other key stakeholders over the coming days to provide ongoing updates.
It is with great regret that we are implementing these measures – however the safety of our staff, visitors and traders is of paramount importance. We thank all our members, partners and traders in advance for their support and understanding during this time.
Business Guidance –
The Chancellor has set out a package of temporary, timely and targeted measures to support public services, people and businesses through this period of disruption caused by COVID-19.
This includes a package of measures to support businesses including:
- a statutory sick pay relief package for SMEs
- a Business Rate Relief for small businesses and pubs
- small business grant funding of £3,000 for all business in receipt of Small Business Rates Relief (SBRR) and Rural Rates Relief
- the Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme to support long-term viable businesses who may need to respond to cash-flow pressures by seeking additional finance
- the HMRC Time To Pay Scheme
Support for businesses who are paying sick pay to employees
Legislation will be brought forward to allow small- and medium-sized businesses and employers to reclaim Statutory Sick Pay (SSP) paid for sickness absence due to COVID-19. The eligibility criteria for the scheme will be as follows:
- this refund will cover up to 2 weeks’ SSP per eligible employee who has been off work because of COVID-19
- employers with fewer than 250 employees will be eligible – the size of an employer will be determined by the number of people they employed as of 28 February 2020
- employers will be able to reclaim expenditure for any employee who has claimed SSP (according to the new eligibility criteria) as a result of COVID-19
- employers should maintain records of staff absences and payments of SSP, but employees will not need to provide a GP fit note
- eligible period for the scheme will commence the day after the regulations on the extension of Statutory Sick Pay to those staying at home comes into force
- the government will work with employers over the coming months to set up the repayment mechanism for employers as soon as possible
Support for businesses who pay business rates
Business Rates retail discount in England to 100% for the 2020 to 2021 tax year for properties below £51,000 rateable value.
The relief will also be expanded to the leisure and hospitality sectors in response to COVID-19.
Businesses that received the retail discount in the 2019 to 2020 tax year will be rebilled by their local authority as soon as possible.
Those businesses eligible for the newly expanded retail discount and/or the new pubs discount may need to apply to their local authority to receive the discount.
Any enquiries on eligibility
for, or provision of, the reliefs should be directed to the relevant local
authority. Guidance for local authorities on the application of the expanded
retail discount will be published by 20 March
Support for businesses who pay little
or no business rates
The government will provide an
additional £2.2 billion funding for local authorities to support small
businesses that already pay little or no business rates because of Small
Business Rate Relief (SBBR). This will provide a one-off grant of £3,000 to
business currently eligible for SBRR or Rural Rate Relief, to help meet their
ongoing business costs.
Support for businesses through the
Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme
A new temporary Coronavirus
Business Interruption Loan Scheme, delivered by the British Business Bank, will
launch in a matter of weeks to support businesses to access bank lending and
overdrafts. The government will provide lenders with a guarantee of 80% on each
loan (subject to a per-lender cap on claims) to give lenders further confidence
in continuing to provide finance to SMEs. The government will not charge
businesses or banks for this guarantee, and the Scheme will support loans of up
to £1.2 million in value. This new guarantee will initially support up to £1
billion of lending on top of current support offered through the British
Business Bank.
Support for businesses paying tax
All businesses and self-employed people in financial distress, and with outstanding tax liabilities, may be eligible to receive support with their tax affairs through HMRC’s Time To Pay service. These arrangements are agreed on a case-by-case basis and are tailored to individual circumstances and liabilities.
If you are concerned about
being able to pay your tax due to COVID-19, call HMRC’s dedicated
helpline on 0800 0159 559.
Insurance
Businesses should check with their insurance provider if they are covered. Many businesses are unlikely to be covered as most business interruption insurance policies are dependent on damage to property, which will exclude pandemics. Some businesses may have purchased a specific add on relating to notifiable diseases, but some of these will still specify damage to the building. Some businesses may have purchased supply chain or denial of access cover which may meet their needs in this case.
For more information on the support available to businesses during this time contact the Make It York team on business@makeityork.com.
Notes to Editor
Make It York
Make It York’s purpose is to develop and promote the city and its surroundings – nationally and internationally – as a vibrant and attractive place to live, visit, study, work and do business. The company’s remit covers leisure and business tourism, city centre management, festivals and events, business support and inward investment.
One of Make It York’s strategic aims is to promote York as a brilliant place to do business, helping to support business growth and innovation across a range of business sectors, such as financial & professional services, rail and high value manufacturing and to stimulate greater inward investment.
For further information please contact:
Amy Goodman – Consumer Communications
Manager
Email: amy.goodman@makeityork.com
Katie Parsons – Corporate Communications Manager
Email: Katie.Parsons@makeityork.com
Ana Ignatova – Communications Executive
Email: ana.ignatova@makeityork.com