SHROPSHIRE Council has now paid out around £130 million to support businesses hit by the coronavirus pandemic, it was announced.

The council has handed out the money through a range of grant support – with work in place to launch the Restart grants in early April.

But it is also calling on those eligible businesses who have not applied for a Local Restrictions Support Grant (LRSG) to do so before it is too late.

Those who have not applied for the November, December and January wave of LRSG only have until the end of March to apply.

Those who have not applied for the latest round covering mid-February and March have until the end of May.

Matt Potts, business growth and inward investment manager, said: “We have been working extremely hard to process grants to support the county’s businesses over the past 12 months and reaching £130 million is a real milestone.

“We endeavour to ensure every eligible business has received the support they need and urge those who have not yet applied to do so before the deadlines.

“Looking forward we have the Restart grants coming up at the start of April and that will be worth between £2,667-£18,000 per eligible business alongside another round of discretionary funding and we are due to receive more guidance about the funds from Government imminently.

“We will continue to do all we can to support our businesses and ensure the Shropshire economy bounces back and flourishes as we hopefully look forward to a brighter future.”

The latest LRSG grant payments cover a 44-day period from February 16 to March 31, and eligible businesses will receive the following amounts depending on their rateable value.

A qualifying business with a rateable value of exactly £15,000 or under will receive a payment of £2,096 per 44-day qualifying period

A qualifying business with a rateable value over £15,000 and less than £51,000 will receive a payment of £3,143 per 44-day qualifying period

A qualifying business with a rateable value of exactly £51,000 or above will receive a payment of £4,714 per 44-day qualifying period

To find out more about this and earlier rounds of the fund, head to https://shropshire.gov.uk/covid-19-grants