Coronavirus – Information for Tourism Businesses in Moray Speyside
This page contains up to date details of all COVID related funding, information and guidance for Businesses in Moray Speyside.
If you are a visitor looking for COVID-19 information, please check out our COVID Information for visitors
Sign-up to our regular industry newsletter to get the latest updates, information and funding advice.
Government Confirm Level Zero (and beyond) from 9th August
UPDATED 5TH AUGUST 2021
First Minister Nicola Sturgeon confirmed that Scotland will move to ‘beyond level zero’ from Monday 9th August.
– Most of the remaining restrictions will be lifted from Monday 9th August.
– Current social distancing measures and limits on social gatherings will be lifted.
– All venues will be able to open with some mitigation measures.
– Changes to automatic isolation for close contacts.
– Local restrictions may be used as required.
Moray Moves to Level Two
Current COVID-19 Status in Moray Speyside
UPDATED 21ST MAY 2021
First Minister Nicola Sturgeon confirmed that as of midnight on Friday 21st May 2021, Moray will move to Scottish Government Level Two.
Check out our latest blog post for the most up to date information on financial support available for affected businesses.
Tourism & Hospitality Sector Guidance
The Scottish Government has now issued updated sector guidelines for tourism and hospitality businesses aimed at helping you get ready for opening.
The Guidance is far from exhaustive, but should provide you with the info you need to make sure you’re adhering to the updated requirements for contact tracing, social distancing etc.
Please note that the Guidance is being continually developed so it is likely to change as we go forward.
Restart Payments – Updated 5th May 2021
Visit Moray Speyside have received several reports of SFBF Restart Payments, due on 19th April failing to appear in business bank accounts.
If you have not received your restart payment as of 1st May 2021, but had previously been in receipt of SFBF monthly closure payments, we would urge you to contact us.
Moray Council COVID-19 Discretionary Business Restart Grants
NOW CLOSED
The Discretionary Business Restart Grants provides a one-off restart grant of £8,000 to successful applicants which pay NDR & have not been able to access any funding since October 2020 with the exception of any small Discretionary Business Fund grants.
Please note that this fund will be issued on a first come first served basis for complete applications & will close once the allocated budget is spent.
Eligibility criteria:
- Business trading prior to 31/10/2020
- Business is based in Moray
- Business has valid a VAT, PAYE, Companies House registration, SCIO, CIC or UTR number or evidence of application.
- My business premises are registered for Non-Domestic rates (if you pay rates through your landlord rather than directly to a Council, you are still eligible to apply but must provide evidence of this arrangement through copy of your lease agreement).
- Business is not eligible for any coronavirus funding support since October 2020 with the exception of a small Discretionary Business Fund grant.
- Business has not received an enforcement notice as a result of breaching Covid-19 regulations
- Business is not in administration, insolvency or received notice to be struck off Companies House.
- My business would normally have an annual turnover of more than £60,000
- My business employs fewer than 50 staff
- My business has suffered a negative financial impact from COVID-19 restrictions.
Examples of business that may benefit from this fund: - Trades – Construction, Plumber, Painter & Decorator, Joiner, Laundries etc. who have been restricted from entering people’s homes, or restricted site operations and travel.
- Kennels and catteries that have been restricted and seen a significant reduction.
- Auto repair/Garages with reduction in trade due to MOT delays and restrictions on staff and social distancing.
- Newsagents, takeaways and other retail that has remained open, had no access to other grants but have suffered from lower footfall and customer levels
Support for Small Accommodation Providers Paying Council Tax
The Scottish Government have confirmed that eligible applicants will receive an SFBF April payment of £1,000 and a Restart Grant of £8,000.
Roadmap out of Lockdown
On Tuesday 16th March Scottish Government revealed their proposed roadmap for Scotland’s return to normal life.
Key Dates for Tourism and Hospitality as as follows;
2nd April – The ‘stay at home’ requirement will be lifted and replaced with a ‘stay local’ message (meaning you will still have to stay within your local authority boundary.)
5th April – Assuming that all goes well, a wider range of current restrictions will be released –
- he resumption of outdoor contact sport for 12-17 year olds
- return of college students within the top three priority groups identified by Colleges Scotland as most likely not to complete this academic year (estimated as 29% of learners)
- reopening of non-essential ‘click and collect’ retail
- extending the list of retail permitted to include:
° garden centres (indoor and outdoor)
° key cutting shops
° mobility equipment shops
° baby equipment shops
° electrical repair shops
° hairdressers and barbers (with shopfronts – not mobile services), by appointment only
° homeware shops
° vehicle showrooms (appointment only) and forecourts
The prohibition of in-home socialising will continue to be kept under review at this date.
26th April – Assuming the data allows it, a more significant reopening of the economy and society will begin from 26th April, including the following easings:
- extending outdoor socialising to permit up to 6 people from up to 3 households to gather
- allowing 12-17 year olds to meet outdoors in groups of 6 from up to 6 households
- travel within all of mainland Scotland permitted (subject to other restrictions that remain in place)
- remaining shops can reopen and mobile close contact services can resume
- gyms and swimming pools can reopen for individual exercise
- tourist accommodation to reopen (self-catering accommodation to be restricted in line with rules on indoor gatherings)
- work in people’s homes to resume
- non-essential childcare permitted
- driving lessons and tests to resume
- weddings and funerals for up to 50 (including wakes and receptions with no alcohol permitted)
- libraries, museums, galleries re-open
- outdoor hospitality to open till 10pm with alcohol permitted. Indoor hospitality permitted without alcohol and closing at 8pm
- social mixing in indoor public places will be subject to current maximum of 4 people from up to 2 households
17th May – From this date, The Scottish Government hope to introduce the following easings:
- re-introducing in-home socialising for up to 4 people from up to 2 households
- further re-opening of hospitality: bars, pubs, restaurants and cafes can stay open until 10.30pm indoors with alcohol permitted and 2 hour time-limited slots and until 10pm outdoors with alcohol permitted
- adult outdoor contact sport and indoor group exercises can resume
- cinemas, amusement arcades and bingo halls can re-open subject to capacity constraints
- small scale indoor and outdoor events can resume subject to capacity constraints (to be confirmed following stakeholder engagement)
- colleges and universities can return to a more blended model of learning
- more in-person (face-to-face) support services can resume
- non-professional performance arts can resume outdoors
For obvious reasons, it is not sensible for The Scottish Government to provide firm timescales beyond the end of May, however it is intended that by early June, the whole of Scotland will move back to Level 1.
Support for Larger Self-Catering Properties
Eligible self–catering businesses will be eligible for one-off grant support of £2,000.
To be eligible for support, self-catering businesses must be on the NDR roll, must have been trading on 2nd Nov 2020 and must be recorded by the rates assessor as having seven or more bed spaces IN ONE PROPERTY .
This support will be paid by local authorities who will contact eligible operators – we are told there is no need to contact the Council yourself.
Visit the Moray Council website to read for yourself
Discretionary Business Fund
Moray Council’s Discretionary Business Fund is now closed.
The aim of this fund is to mitigate the financial challenges experienced by businesses impacted by restrictions and regulations introduced since October 2020 to control the spread of COVID-19.
The fund gives individual local authorities the ability to direct financial support to specific groups, sectors or businesses within their local business communities who have not been able to receive any recent funding and are not likely to benefit from the planned future funding schemes.
The Discretionary Business Fund provides a one-off payment of £2,000 to successful applicants.
Please note that this fund will be issued on a first come first served basis for complete applications & will close once the allocated budget is spent.
The Council will begin assessing applications from 15th February
Eligibility criteria:
- Business trading prior to 23rd March 2020
- Must be based in Moray and have fewer than 50 FTE employees
- Must have a valid VAT, PAYE, Companies House registration, SCIO, CIC or UTR number
- Business has not been eligible for any coronavirus funding since October 2020
- Before March 2020 must normally have an annual turnover of more than £3,000
- Business has not received an enforcement notice as a result of breaching COVID-19 regulations
- Business is not in administration, insolvency or received notice to be struck off Companies House
- Business can evidence a 30% negative financial impact from COVID-19 restrictions
Strategic Framework Business Fund
Updated April 1st 2021
The Strategic Framework Business Fund (SFBF) provided grants to businesses that were required to close by law or to significantly change their operations due to COVID-19 restrictions from 2 November 2020.
This fund closed to new applicants on 22 March 2021.
The final four-weekly payment will be made on 22 March 2021. As in previous months, this will consist of:
- £2,000 for businesses with a rateable value up to £51,000
- £3,000 for businesses with a rateable value of £51,001 or above
On 19 April 2021, all SFBF recipients will automatically receive a combined final 2-week supplement and a one-off restart grant to help them reopen.
Retailers in receipt of SFBF will be eligible for grants up to £7,500 based on rateable value:
- for properties with a rateable value below £51,000: £7,000 (£6,000+£1,000)
- for properties with a rateable value above £51,001: £7,500 (£6,000+£1,500)
Hospitality and leisure businesses in receipt of SFBF will be eligible for grants up to £19,500 based on rateable value:
- for properties with a rateable value of £15,000 or under: £9,000 (£8,000+£1,000)
- for properties with a rateable value between £15,001 and £51,000: £13,000 (£12,000+£1,000)
- for properties with a rateable value of £51,001 or over: £19,500 (£18,000+£1,500)
All businesses currently in receipt of support through the Strategic Framework Business Fund will receive the final payment and restart grant.
The final payment and restart grant are for Scottish businesses that are already receiving funding from the Strategic Framework Business Fund.
A final 4-weekly payment will be made on 22 March 2021.
On 19 April 2021, recipients will automatically receive a combined final 2-week supplement and a one-off restart grant.
Hospitality Top-Up Payments
On 11th January 20121, Scottish Government announced ‘additional’ one-off top-up payments of up to £25,000 for eligible* hospitality businesses.
Top-Up Payments are in addition to the grants businesses receive through the Strategic Business Framework Fund, eligible businesses will also get a one-off grant of:
- £25,000 for hospitality* businesses with a rateable value of £51,001 or more on top of the 4-weekly £3,000
- £6,000 for hospitality* businesses with a rateable value of £51,000 or less on top of the 4-weekly £2,000
- £9,000 for retail and leisure* businesses with a rateable value of £51,001 on top of the 4-weekly £3,000
- £6,000 for retail and leisure* businesses with a rateable value of £51,000 or less on top of the 4-weekly £2,000
In most cases, eligible businesses that have already applied for the 4-weekly payment from the Strategic Framework Business Fund will get an automatic top-up.
National Support and Guidance
The Scottish Government’s FIND BUSINESS SUPPORT web page is a good starting point if you are looking for the most up-to-date national information & guidance.
VisitScotland’s Industry Website is similarly useful and provides a wide range of resources, including up to date consumer sentiment research and signposting to webinars and funding information.
Useful Links
- Association of Scotland’s Self-Caterers Blog – HERE
- Association of Scotland’s Self-Caterers – Updated 2021 Cleaning Protocols
- Association of Scottish Visitor Attractions – Relaunch Advice
- Find Business Support Tourism Information – HERE
- Good to Go Information and Sign-up – HERE
- VisitScotland Topical Questions and FAQ’s – HERE
- VisitScotland Responsible Tourism Guide for Business – HERE