Support for tourism and event businesses during COVID-19

9 October 2020

We are closely monitoring the COVID-19 outbreak and are working hard to provide you with the very latest information to support your business at this very challenging time. We are feeding in industry concerns to Government via the Tourism Industry Emergency Response Group and will be sharing practical advice as soon as it becomes available, publishing the latest announcements and industry information on our dedicated COVID-19 page. Below you will find the latest information and advice to support your businesses. All of our information is kept under continuous review and is updated often.

Government support

A full range of business support measures have been made available to UK businesses and employees, including:

New 9 October:

• The Job Support Scheme will be expanded to support businesses across the UK required to close their premises due to coronavirus restrictions. Read the press release on the expansion of the Job Support Scheme
• £445 heritage organisations in England have received a share of £103 million from the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport to help them through the coronavirus pandemic. The funding is part of the £1.57 billion Culture Recovery Fund which was announced in July. Read the press release on the Culture Recovery Fund.

New 2 October: businesses in Bolton to receive grants of up to £1,500

New 24 September - Winter Economy Plan:

The following measures were announced by the Chancellor on 24 September:

• Job Support Scheme, from 1 November – 31 April, in which the Government will contribute towards the wages of employees who are working fewer than normal hours due to decreased demand
• Extension of the the Self Employment Income Support Scheme Grant (SEISS)
• Extension of the temporary 15% VAT cut for the tourism and hospitality sectors to 31 March
• New Payment Scheme for VAT bills, with businesses to be given the option to pay back in small instalments during the 2021-22 financial year rather than paying the full lump sum at the end of March
• 12 month extension of HMRC’s “Time to Pay” self-service facility
• New Pay as You Grow flexible repayment system for Bounce Back Loans, which have been extended from six years to ten. Interest-only periods of up to six months and payment holidays will also be available to businesses. 
• Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme lenders will be given the ability to extend the length of loans from a maximum of six years to ten years if it will help businesses to repay the loan
• Extension of the application period for the Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme, the Coronavirus Large Business Interruption Loan Scheme, the Bounce Back Loan Scheme and the Future Fund

Read more details in the Chancellor's 24 September statement.

Other support measures previously announced:

• New 18 September: small businesses in England can now find somebody to apply to the Kickstart Scheme grant on their behalf. The Kickstart Scheme provides funding to employers to create job placements for 16 to 24 year olds.
• New 10 September: businesses in England that are required to close due to local lockdowns or targeted restrictions will be able to receive grants worth up to £1,500 every three weeks under the Local Restrictions Support Grant.
• New 22 August: guidance has been released on all the funding opportunities available through the Culture Recovery Fund
• New 11 August: details have been announced of a £40 million Green Recovery Challenge Fund. The fund will help charities and environmental organisations to deliver "shovel-ready" projects across England to restore nature and tackle climate change. Funding will be distributed by The National Lottery Heritage Fund on behalf of DEFRA
• New 30 July: a £20 million business grant fund for SME businesses has been announced. Businesses will be eligible to receive grants of £1,000 - £5,000 to help them access technology, equipment or professional advice as they plan for recovery. 
• New 14 July: a ministerial statement has been issued to support the culture and tourism sectors by both preventing the loss of theatres, concert halls and live music performance venues, and encouraging local planning authorities to exercise their discretion in relation to planning conditions for caravan and holiday parks.
• New 8 July: 'Plan for Jobs' support measures, including a VAT reduction from 20% to 5% on most tourism and hospitality-related activities and an 'Eat Out to Help Out' discount scheme which will provide a 50% reduction for sit-down meals in cafes, restaurants and pubs across the UK from Monday to Wednesday every week throughout August 2020
• New 5 July: £1.57 billion investment to protect Britain’s world-class cultural, arts and heritage institutions
• New 3 July: £10 million Kick-starting Tourism Package, to be delivered via local Growth Hubs.
• Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme
• Business Rates Holiday for Retail, Hospitality and Leisure
• Retail, Hospitality and Leisure Grants Fund
• Small Business Grant Funding
• Local Authority Discretionary Grants Fund, aimed at small businesses with ongoing fixed property-related costs such as bed and breakfasts that pay council tax rather than business rates, allocated at the discretion of local authorities. Businesses who are eligible for the Self-Employed Income support scheme (SEISS) are eligible to apply for this fund as well.
• Bounce Back Loans (micro loan scheme)
• Statutory Sick Pay Rebate
• HMRC helpline for tax payment issues due to COVID-19 (‘Time to Pay’) – 0800 024 1222. You can also register to receive HMRC email alerts for upcoming webinars.
• COVID-19 Corporate Financing Facility
• VAT Deferral (now closed)
• Income Tax Deferral for the Self-Employed
• Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme and step-by-step guide for employers. You can check the availability of the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme website. It has also been announced that from 1 July employees in the scheme can return to work part time
• Confirmation that furloughed employees will receive full parental leave entitlement
• Self-employment Income Support Scheme
• £750 million package for frontline charities
• An additional 3 months to file accounts
• Restructuring and insolvency advice
• Measures to protect businesses from aggressive rent collection (now closed)
• Corporate Insolvency and Governance Bill, which amends insolvency and company law to support businesses through this period of instability 
• A temporary service by Companies House that allows businesses to upload documents that previously had to be sent in
• The extenson of certain planning permissions

Other rules have also been relaxed, including regarding destroying spoilt beer and pub/restaurant takeaway operations.

Please note all grants made under the above schemes are subject to tax should the business make a profit during the current financial year.

Full details on all of these business support measures:

Support from your bank

Your bank may be able to offer support measures if your finances have been impacted.

Have a discussion with your bank as early as possible to produce a mutually beneficial action plan.

The following banks also have dedicated helplines for business customers affected by COVID-19:

• Barclays: 0800 1971 086
• Santander: 0800 0156 382

Summary of actions to take

Immediate

• Contact your insurance company to check if you can make a claim for lost business and/or closure
• Contact your bank to see what support measures they can offer
• Contact your suppliers and work together to mitigate fall in demand
• Contact customers who have already booked with you directly
• Keep staff informed of the latest and plan contingency measures where possible
• Update your website and share messages through social media
• Liaise with your Destination Management Organisation (DMO) / tourism association (please be aware the ability to respond at this time may vary between DMOs, depending on resource)

Next steps

• Check official Government advice on a regular basis
• Continue communicating with customers
• Consider having a more flexible booking policy for future customers looking to book trips later in the year.