Coronavirus support is available to employers and the self-employed, including sole traders and limited company directors. People may be eligible for loans, tax relief and cash grants, whether their business is open or closed.

To find out what support is available for specific businesses, use the business support finder online here.

A summary of the national support offer is below:

• Government has extended the furlough scheme until the end of April 2021. The government will cover the cost of 80 per cent of the wages of furloughed employees for hours not worked – employers will only be asked to cover NICs and pension contributions.
• The self-employed scheme has also been extended until April 2021. This third grant, covers 80 per cent of average trading profits between November and January 2021, capped at £7,500 in total. A fourth grant, to cover February to April, will be introduced in due course.
• Businesses forced to close can claim grants of up to £3,000 per month. For businesses with a rateable value of between £15,000 and £51,000, the amount is £2,000 per month, and for businesses with a rateable value of £15,000 or below, the amount is £1,334 per month.
• Retail, hospitality and leisure businesses forced to close can claim a one-off grant of up to £9,000. This is £6,000 for businesses with a rateable value between £15,000 and £51,000; or £4,000 for businesses with a rateable value of £15,000 or below.
• Councils are to be given an additional £500 million discretionary funding to support their local businesses. We will share more information on this when we have it.
• All “wet-led” pubs in areas that were in Tiers 2, 3, or 4 for any part of December will receive £1,000 as a Christmas Support Payment. This will be administered by local authorities, and we will share more information on this when we can.