BUSINESSES in Leeds are being encouraged to apply for new Covid-19 funding support as the city prepares for the next crucial stages of the country’s lockdown exit roadmap. One-off restart grants are now available from Leeds City Council to help eligible businesses with the cost of opening up after coronavirus restrictions are eased. Non-essential retail businesses that have had to close during the current national lockdown could receive as much as £6,000 worth of support, while affected businesses in the personal care, gym and sports, leisure, accommodation and hospitality sectors could be given up to £18,000. Non-essential retail businesses are set to reopen on April 12, as are hairdressers, nail salons, gyms and self-contained accommodation venues like campsites and holiday lets. Hospitality venues will be able to serve people outdoors once again.
THE ARTS and culture sector in Leeds is set for a significant post-COVID recovery boost thanks to successful bids for important grant funding. Leeds City Council is one of a number of organisations in the city which have been awarded a share of Arts Council England’s Cultural Recovery Fund, giving the authority’s venues crucial extra support to welcome back visitors after the pandemic. The council has been given a grant of £302,750, which will be spent on relaunching the city’s Arts Events and Venues programme and its nine museums and galleries sites and offering their millions of annual visitors a range of new cultural experiences both online and in person.