Last updated 21/12/2021
The pandemic is ongoing, and with the spread of the Omicron variant, future restrictions are becoming more likely. For up-to-date advice on what you are and are not allowed to do, visit the GOV.UK website.
To reduce social contact, the regulations impose restrictions on how some businesses provide goods and services.
To help affected businesses to navigate this uncertain time, the government has issued a number of support initiatives, set out below.
Coronavirus (COVID‑19) support is available to employers and the self-employed, including sole traders and limited company directors. Use the Government's business support finder to see what support is available for you and your business.
Businesses in the hospitality and leisure sectors in England will be eligible for one-off grants of up to £6,000 per premises, plus more than £100 million discretionary funding will be made available for local authorities to support other businesses
More information is available here. Further guidance and information on how to access the grants will be released shortly.
View the full announcement on GOV.UK.
As increasing numbers of Covid-19 cases means more workers taking time off work, the government is reintroducing the Statutory Sick Pay Rebate Scheme (SSPRS).
The SSPRS will help small and medium-sized employers – those with fewer than 250 employees – by reimbursing them for the cost of Statutory Sick Pay for Covid-related absences, for up to 2 weeks per employee. Firms will be eligible for the scheme from today and they will be able to make claims retrospectively from mid-January.
For more information, please see the Government Fact Sheet.
Recognising that the rise of the Omicron variant means some businesses are likely to struggle over the coming weeks, the government is providing one-off grants of up to £6,000 per premises for businesses in the hospitality and leisure sectors in England.
At what is often their most profitable time of year, many pubs and restaurants have seen cancellations and reduced footfall as people have responded to the rise in cases ahead of Christmas, with Hospitality UK reporting that many businesses have lost 40-60% of their December trade, often their most profitable month.
See the full announcement at GOV.UK.
