Further funds available for Blackpool businesses

The Blackpool Business Recovery Fund has reopened to offer support for the town's businesses which have suffered as a result of the coronavirus pandemic.

The £3.2m discretionary grant scheme is targeted at organisations which have been ineligible for existing grants, including coach operators, daytime takeaways, various creative industries. The scheme will also provide additional support to taxi drivers.

Larger leisure and accommodation businesses with multiple venues can reapply, and smaller tourism supply chain businesses can apply for the first time.

Coun Lynn Williams, leader of Blackpool Council, said: "Following the first lockdown, we paid out £47m in grants to over 4,000 local businesses. More recently, the government provided a series of smaller grants linked to both tiered and lockdown restrictions, albeit with a focus on non-essential retail, leisure and hospitality businesses. The council acted quickly to ensure these grants were paid out as efficiently as possible to eligible businesses.

"We know there are many businesses that have fallen outside existing schemes. Devising the criteria for the second round of the discretionary scheme has been very challenging given the limited resources available, but we listened to local businesses, business associations and MPs and refined our grants policy to allow as many new businesses as possible to apply. We are doing everything in our power to help wherever we can."

Businesses have until midnight on Wednesday 31 March to apply.

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