15 January 2021
Kickstart Tourism Grants
APPLICATIONS ARE NOW OPEN UNTIL 22ND JANUARY
Contact email and details on how to apply are below.
There is now further funding available for eligible SMEs in Enterprise M3 LEP for the Visitor Economy (Kickstart Tourism).
Funded by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF), eligible SMEs can access grants of between £1,000 - £3,000 (up to £5,000 in exceptional circumstances) for specialist advice or equipment/technology. Please note that due to this grant being funded by ERDF some of the eligibility criteria is shown in Euros. You can use this link to convert from GBP to Euros
This funding aims to support SMEs affected by Covid-19 to respond to the immediate challenges they face; and to adapt, diversify or repurpose in order to strengthen their capacity to recover. Ultimately, the project objective is to support the economy by helping SMEs to recover and rebuild, safeguarding jobs and opportunities for the future.
This grant funding scheme is being delivered by Exemplas Ltd on behalf of Enterprise M3 LEP.
The call opens on Monday 30th November 2020 and will be open for submission of your full applications and your quote by 23.59 on Friday 22nd January 2021.
Eligible, fully-complete applications will be assessed in the order in which they are returned to Exemplas. Due to the high level of applications expected, we will be unable to take applications to the next stage if application forms are incomplete or more information is required.
We encourage all applicants to check through the eligibility criteria, pre-application information and FAQs on our website to ensure your application has the best chance of being successful.
Eligible fully completed applications will be assessed in the order that they arrive.
We will not be able to provide feedback if your application is not complete.
Please submit your completed application and accompanying documents/quote as soon as it is ready.
Who is eligible for this grant?
- SMEs (this includes third sector organisations, social enterprises and trading charities) trading within the LEP area
Businesses operating in an excluded sector i.e. nuclear, tobacco, airport infrastructure (see ERDF regulation 1301/2013 Art 3(3), fishery and aquaculture sector, undertakings involved in the primary production of agricultural products, undertakings active in the sector of processing and marketing of agricultural products will not be eligible.
- If your business has received state aid in the last 3 years the total should not be in excess of €200,000. Businesses exceeding this level of state aid funding will not be eligible. Click here for more information on state aid.'
- This grant is only available to businesses which have been negatively impacted by COVID-19.
- Must be able to demonstrate that the business has the potential to survive Covid-19 and rebuild
- Your business must have been trading prior to February 2020
- Minimum grant amount £1,000 £3,000 (up to £5,000 in exceptional circumstances) ( see FAQs on our website for the definition criteria)
- Activity being claimed for must not have been started/committed prior to your application being approved
- All Activities must be completed, paid for, and grant claim submitted by 16th February 2021
- Your staff headcount must be below 250FTE, businesses with more than 250 employees will not be eligible.
- Your business must have a balance sheet of below €43million.
- Your business must have a turnover of below €50million.
- Your business must have a trading address in the Enterprise M3 LEP area.
Please note:
The Visitor Economy (Kickstart Tourism) grant is for those businesses who operate in the visitor economy, which includes businesses related to the tourism or visitor sector, or businesses/organisations which operate in support of the above. Examples of supporting businesses could include gift shops attached to a visitor attraction, or ice cream vans operating on the periphery of a tourist premises.
A list of SIC codes that are eligible for the visitor economy grant is available here.
What expenditure/activity is eligible?
- Review of the business strategy / operating mode
- Strategic review of business models
- HR, financial or legal advice
- Coaching & mentoring in leadership & management development / Change management
- Innovation strategy to adapt and diversify products/services of new technology
- Developing or revising marketing/digital strategies to reach new markets
- Mitigating the impact of social distancing measures
- Rebuilding a viable business model
- Developing product offerings
- Legal and environmental health compliance
- Skills analysis and development plans
- Workforce management
- Employee engagement, welfare and wellbeing
- Minor equipment to adapt or adopt new technology in order to continue to deliver business activity or diversify
For the Visitor Economy (Kickstart Tourism) grant, activity could also include:
All the above plus:
- Support for SMEs with productivity improvements such as enhanced use of digital tools such as yield management software, mentoring, networking or other measures
- Support to develop innovative delivery in a socially distanced economy for example, new ways of delivering cultural events and festivals that are so critical to the visitor experience
Items which are not eligible include PPE and IT equipment unless specifically required to adapt to a COVID-safe environment.
Please note:
- The grant must cover 100% of the cost of the service or product and cannot be used to part-fund expenditure.
- Grants can only be used for new activity and cannot fund activity already being undertaken.
- Activity/work you claim for should not be commissioned until your business has received an offer letter.
- If successful, following a formal grant application, grant funding will be paid upon production of a paid invoice for the service or item you have procured with evidence of the payment from the bank account used to pay the invoice.
What is the application process?
Before requesting an application form, please ensure you can answer yes to the following statements:
- You have read and meet the criteria for the grant
- Your business has been impacted negatively by Covid-19 and able to evidence it
- Provide evidence that the company was financially stable at December 2019
- You have a project/activity in mind that will help to overcome these challenges, and are seeking one quote to be submitted with your application
- The project/activity will be completed, paid for, and a claim submitted to Exemplas by 16th February 2021
- The project will create and/or safeguard jobs, and/or create new products and services
- We can share your information with our Growth Hub Partners
- Your business trading address is within the Enterprise M3 LEP area
Funding is limited and we are expecting a high volume of applications. To improve the chances of being successful, please ensure that your application clearly sets out how you intend to use the grant funding requested in order to respond to the pandemic; and to help your business to adapt and recover, following the impact of the pandemic.
You will need to include details of what the funding will help your business to achieve and the specific benefits that will occur as a result.
Please request an application form by sending an e-mail to [email protected] and include the information in the box below (text in red as an example). Please note, in requesting this information you confirm that you meet all the eligibility criteria set out above and have read and understood the terms and conditions at the bottom of this page.
Business name
Skye Ltd
Business trading address
Unit 10 Barclay Gardens Walton-on-Thames Surrey
Post code: KT12 2PQ
Local Authority Borough/District of trading address. This grant is valid for the following boroughs:
- Basingstoke and Deane
- East Hampshire
- Elmbridge
- Rushmoor
- Guildford
- Hart
- Runnymede
- Spelthorne
- Surrey Heath
- Test Valley
- Woking
- Waverley
- Winchester
Contact name
Jo Smith
Mobile number
07888743261
Email address
Website
Business registration No/ PAYE/VAT/UR/CO House (if available)
9670235
Date of registration
6th July 2015
Legal status
Limited
Sector
Marketing & PR
You must include your business details in your email. Once your email has been received by Exemplas, you will then be sent within one working day an application form to complete and return by the deadline.
Application deadline: The deadline for submitting your completed application form and quote is 23.59 on 22nd January.
Please submit your one quote for the work required together with your application.
Applications will be reviewed and assessed based on meeting the eligibility criteria and requirements set out above, please note if you are not successful you will be notified and included on a LEP area waiting list in case of more funding becoming available.
If you do not meet the eligibility criteria you will be notified that your application has been rejected.
What happens if my business is successful in obtaining a grant?
If your application is successful, you will be notified by Exemplas and sent details of the next steps. Activity/work you claim for should not be commissioned until your business has received an offer letter. Please note, funds will only be paid upon production of an invoice for the service or item you have claimed against.
What if my business is not eligible or unsuccessful in obtaining a grant?
We are unable to provide individual feedback. However, if unsuccessful or ineligible for this grant, our team of experienced business advisers would be happy to provide advice on other support or funding options that may be available to you. Click here to contact us about other support for your business.
Terms and conditions:
- Only one application can be made per business. Multiple attempts to apply may invalidate all applications for your business.
- Grants must be claimed by 16th February 2021 after receiving confirmation that your application has been accepted unless agreed otherwise.
- The grant must cover 100% of the service your business is procuring (up to a maximum total project value of £5,000). This grant cannot be used to part-fund expenditure.
