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Economic Development

Second £1m grant programme launched for Cheshire and Warrington businesses

Despite not being in Tier 3 itself, areas like Chester are surrounded by regions with tough new restrictions - so businesses are struggling

A shopper wearing a face mask(Image: Liam McBurney/PA Wire)

A second £1m grant programme has been launched for businesses in Cheshire and Warrington by the region's local enterprise partnership (LEP).

The LEP said the new fund has been created to help small businesses meet some of the extra costs created by Covid restrictions.

Despite areas like Chester being in the second highest Tier 2 area of Covid restrictions, they are now surrounded by areas with tougher rules - including Wales, Liverpool and Manchester. At the weekend, businesses in the city claimed their customer base had been stripped away.

The LEP's new funding package follows the £1.1m announced in August - and is designed to help businesses to find innovative ways of working within the new three-tier local Covid alert levels.

Clare Hayward MBE DL, chair of Cheshire and Warrington LEP, said: “We understand how challenging the Covid restrictions are for business and these new grants are part of our on-going efforts to help.

"We need to protect jobs and support companies across the board – but we are especially mindful of hard hit sectors such as the high street, tourism and hospitality. We are also making these investments because we want to underline the message that people can still enjoy going out locally while remaining within the restrictions and staying safe.”

Businesses will be eligible to apply for capital grants to invest in new ideas that boost revenue or help to increase customer confidence by further increasing their levels of Covid-security.