Iain Nicolson, Renfrewshire Council leader

The £1.3 million Renfrewshire Coronavirus Business Support Fund offers local businesses, including people self-employed, the opportunity to apply for:

• An interest free Business Restart Loan between £1,000 to £5,000 repayable up to three years to assist with short-term cashflow

• A 50% match-funded Business Resilience Grant from £1,000 to £10,000 to help businesses meet changed objectives and plan for growth

• A Business Adaptation Grant providing match-funding from £1,000 to £2500 for businesses adapting their premises to meet physical distancing requirements, open for retrospective applications.

Details of each fund, eligibility information and the online application are available here.

Applicants will also receive a call from one of Renfrewshire Council’s Business Gateway advisers to discuss their application and provide tailored advice to meet their specific needs.

This fund has been created following detailed discussion with 500 local companies to determine what they feel can make the biggest difference in the short-term.

Iain Nicolson, Renfrewshire Council leader, said: “I am acutely aware from regular dialogue with our business community throughout the pandemic of the economic harm coronavirus is causing in Renfrewshire and we know we must be ready to help tackle this now, and in the months ahead.

“We have awarded more than 2600 government grants totalling £27.5m to help local businesses address the immediate impact and have now established this fund, listening to what businesses tell us will help them most.

“I recognise we are on a long and difficult journey, but we have a strong local economy and a business community that supports one another. We also have an excellent track record of tackling unemployment and helping people find work and together with immediate assistance, we are working with business, enterprise and education partners locally to prepare Renfrewshire’s long-term roadmap to recovery.”

The council is also offering barriers for cafes using outdoor spaces and Business PPE packs to local businesses, having secured funding from the Scottish Government’s Towns and Business Improvement Districts (BIDs) Resilience and Recovery Fund, which is run by Scotland’s Towns Partnerships.

Businesses may also benefit from up to two days of fully-funded consultancy support from experts across a range of topics including: finance, IT, legal, property and HR. The team can be contacted on 0141 530 2406 or by email to renfrewshire@bgateway.com.