Employment and financial support

• Check if you can get statutory sick pay (SSP)
• Check if you're eligible for Universal Credit
• Check if you're eligible for Employment and Support Allowance (ESA)
• Your rights if your hours are cut or you’re laid off
• What to do if you cannot pay your tax bill on time

Businesses and other organisations

• How to keep your employees safe
• How to clean workplaces safely
• Check what you need to do about Statutory Sick Pay
• Find out what to do for different businesses and organisations
• UK businesses trading internationally
• What the government is doing to support businesses

Healthcare workers and carers

• NHS guidance for people working in healthcare
• How to protect people in residential care, supported living and home care
• How to manage adult social care
• How to protect extremely vulnerable people (shielding)

School closures, education, and childcare

• School opening for children of key workers
• Dealing with COVID-19 in nurseries, schools and universities

How you can help

• Help produce ventilators and components

Government Financial Help - an update from Stephan Cork

Stefan Cork is a local Mortgage Adviser who also helps to run the Love Thame Helpers Facebook page - that is key to mobilising support in Thame during this time. He recently posted this update, and has given us permission to share it here as it provides a great summary of some key information around finances at this time. Please do note that everything is so fluid, with announcements daily, so do investigate further if you think that any of the following may be of use to you.

£10k business grant.
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This is payable to any small business that pays Small Business Rates or gets Small Business Rates Relief. It is a genuine freebie, not a loan, not repayable and bears no interest. The aim is for those businesses to be able to cover their rent for the next 6-12 months. This is why home based businesses will not receive the grant.
The local authorities have lists of all businesses that qualify as they collect the rates and will be writing to them in the next few weeks with the intention being to pay this by the end of April. You do not need to apply, it will be automatic.

Job Retention Scheme
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Up to 80% of salary and employment costs to a maximum of £2500. You MUST furlough your employees; you cannot keep them employed nor can you ask them to work from home or part time or obtain a salary top up. It is an either/or situation. If they are working you CANNOT claim. HMRC are currently setting up online systems where you will declare the furloughed staff and then the company will be reimbursed the income. As such the company continues to pay the salary. Companies can top up the difference to the normal salary level if they wish but there is no obligation to do so. Payment systems are being set up to do this as a matter of urgency. This will run for 3 months initially starting 1st March 2020.
Directors can’t claim the employee retention money as you cannot furlough directors, by its very nature the business would then be deemed unviable and the aim is to retain jobs and businesses.

Self Employed Income
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There is currently a bill in Parliament but it is likely to be announced very shortly and mirror the employee scheme. This will take the form of an average of the last THREE years tax calculations to include salaries (including directors salary) and almost certainly rental/property income. The unknown at present is if dividends will also be included but gut feeling is they are likely to be. If you don’t have 3 tax returns, are newly self employed etc then evidence of prior income, averaged incomes, bank statements etc are likely to be acceptable. Again this is likely to be 80% of the average to a maximum of £2500 a month and run for 3 months initially.

Credit : Lisa Orme from one of Stefan's mortgage broker groups.

Small businesses - Additional support

Small Business Britain are sending out daily newsletters with updated information on where you can find advice and support for your small business during the Cornoavirus pandemic. Sign up here.

They also have daily Facebook lives sharing expert support and advice from small business experts. Find their Facebook page here.