Discretionary Grant Scheme

Before you apply

This fund is now closed for applications.

The Discretionary Grant Scheme (December 2021 to January 2022) has been set up to help micro, small, and medium-size businesses which were unable to receive support from any of the grant schemes set up by the Scottish Government. It is to support businesses affected by the measures to control the spread of the Omicron variant of Coronavirus and who have lost trade during this key trading period.

The support is to address the short-term financial challenges experienced by businesses during December 2021 and January 2022.

The grant scheme will allow us to support eligible businesses with a payment from £500 to £2,000 (based on impact level).

The grant is open to all trading businesses including:

• Limited Companies
• Sole Traders/Self-Employed
• Trusts
• Partnerships.

Applications will be considered only if they are complete and include the requested evidence, on a first-come, first-served basis. Any incomplete applications, or should the supporting documents provided be unreadable will result in the processing of your application being paused with completed application forms being first progressed. Applicants are therefore asked to take care, complete the application form correctly and submit the evidence documentation as requested.

The deadline for applications was set for this grant scheme as 5pm Monday 28 March, 2022.

Eligibility

To be eligible, your business needs to comply with the following criteria.

• The business must not have secured a grant from any of the grant schemes in operation to address and provide financial support to businesses affected by the latest public health advice in the period December 2021 to January 2022
• The business must be able to demonstrate a significant reduction in trade (20% or more) due to the recent December 2021 to January 2022 COVID-19 restrictions
• The business was trading on 9 December 2021 (i.e. business was not in administration, insolvency, dormancy or received notice to be struck off at Companies House, dormant or otherwise no trading)
• The business is a Small or Micro business and employs 50 employees or fewer
• The business is based within the Highland Council area

Considerations

• The business has not breached wider COVID regulations/requirements prior to local restrictions
• Businesses with connections to tax havens, as set out in the Coronavirus (Scotland) (No.2) Act 2020, are not eligible to apply
• Any grant scheme payment received must be declared to HMRC as appropriate as part of the tax return for the business
• The business has considered the impact that any payment from the grant scheme may have on any insurance claim made/to be made
• The information provided in the application is correct and it is understood that if any information provided is later found to be false, repayment of funding may be required and depending on circumstances criminal proceedings might be instigated
• The business has a dedicated bank account.
  • It is preferable that this is a formal Business Bank Account, but it is acceptable to have a normal bank account that is used mainly for business banking that shows income and outgoings and is in name of business

Businesses who are not eligible

For organisations ineligible for support under the Discretionary Grant Scheme (December 2021 to January 2022) other support may be available.

To check to see if you are eligible for other support please see Coronavirus Support for Highland Businesses, the UK Government support finder and the Scottish Government’s Find Business Support.