Decision details

Covid 19 Additional Relief (CARF) Update

Decision Maker: Policy and Finance

Decision status: For Determination

Is Key decision?: No

Is subject to call in?: No

Decisions:

The Director of Resources submitted a report updating committee on the Covid 19 Additional Relief Fund (CARF) that was announced by the Chancellor on 21 December 2021. A decision on next steps regarding granting relief to eligible applicants was required as well as what to do with the remaining funding.

 

The Government had issued guidance to local authorities detailing how the scheme should operate and how much each authority had been allocated. The allocation for Ribble Valley Borough Council was £1,239,191.

 

Members were reminded that they had agreed to open an initial application window for eligible businesses to apply which had closed on 28 February 2022. 33 applications had been received of which 5 had been rejected as they had already received full Small Business Rates Relief or the Expanded Retail Discount.Relief was awarded totalling £161,043.68

 

A second application window had been opened and all potentially eligible businesses invited to apply. A further 17 applications had been received, three of which had been rejected as they had already received full Small Business Rate Relief or was a duplicate application.

 

The Director of Resources suggested that each of the applicants should be awarded relief at an initial rate of 50% of the net rates payable for 2021/22 which would result in a total of £42,670.39 of CARF being granted. A third application window could then be opened with the view to bringing a final report to committee on 13 September to determine how to allocate the balance of the funding. Any funding that was not granted by 30 September 2022 would be returned to Central Government.

 

RESOLVED THAT COMMITTEE:

 

1.    Agree to award CARF at the initial rate of 50% of the net rates payable for 2021/22 to the eligible applicants detailed in the report, and

 

2.    Agree to open another application round.

 

Report author: Averil Crowther

Publication date: 23/06/2022

Date of decision: 21/06/2022

Decided at meeting: 21/06/2022 - Policy and Finance

Accompanying Documents: