17 Apr £13.3 million worth of grants awarded to Basildon businesses
Over the past week Basildon Council staff have more than doubled the total number of business grant applications they have processed to help keep businesses going through the coronavirus pandemic, bringing the total value to more than £13 million.
Leader of the Basildon Council Cllr Gavin Callaghan said: “Basildon is the largest and most diverse economy on the Thames estuary after Canary Wharf. It’s vital for Basildon and the entire county of Essex that we get the right support to as many businesses as quickly as possible during this time.
“I’m very grateful to our officers for mobilizing quickly and being in a position to pay out over £13m in grants in just 10 days.
“However, we know that there are still 2,200 businesses in the borough, potentially eligible, who have not yet applied for this relief.
“This week the council has proactively written out to these businesses to encourage them to complete an online application to see if we can get more money out to them quickly.
“We’ve changed our payment run schedule to mean that we can now make payments within 24 hours and we are pushing the messages to our businesses to get in touch with us on our dedicated business helpline as soon as possible.
“I encourage people to get in touch to see how we can help during the coronavirus pandemic: head to www.basildon.gov.uk/coronavirus-business to see the business support available, and complete the online form.”
