Over £2.5 million available for businesses

Businesses based in South Oxfordshire and Vale of White Horse districts in the hospitality, leisure and accommodation sectors are being urged to apply for support from the Omicron Hospitality and Leisure Grant fund.

The government, which devised the scheme, has given £1,482,084 to South Oxfordshire and £1,104,075 to the Vale of White Horse to help support local businesses that have been struggling financially due to the recent Covid-19 Omicron variant.

To apply, eligible businesses must have been open and trading from a property where they are responsible for paying business rates on 30 December.  The criteria of the grant is set by the government and rules of how the money is distributed cannot be changed by the council.  Successful applicants could receive between £2,667 and £6,000 depending on the rateable value of the property.

Business owners can find out the full criteria and complete an online application form via the district councils’ South and Vale Business Support website – svbs.co.uk up until midday on 18 February.

Businesses can also stay up to date with all government grants given to the district councils by signing up to the South and Vale Business Support newsletter via their website.