COVID-19 additional relief fund (CARF)

The Government announced the details of a new COVID-19 additional relief fund (CARF) of £1.5 billion. This fund is for businesses affected by the pandemic who were ineligible for existing support linked to business rates.

Based on the level of funding that has been provided to us of £2,718,364.00 and the potential businesses identified as eligible, the amount of relief for qualifying businesses will be 30% of their 2021/2022 non-domestic rates liability. The level of relief granted has been determined by the Gross Added Value (GVA) as stipulated by the government, the category of business as stipulated by the Valuation Office Agency and following the government guidance on the scheme. 

Businesses are eligible to receive rate relief under this scheme where:

• The qualifying premises is occupied during 2021/2022 (temporary closures due to COVID-19 restrictions are ignored)
• The ratepayer occupying the premises has been adversely affected by the COVID-19 pandemic and has been unable to adequately adapt to that

Exclusions to the fund

Businesses will not be considered for this relief where:

• The ratepayer is in receipt of an extended retail discount or nursery discount
• The premises are classified as unoccupied for non-domestic rating purposes
• The ratepayer is in receipt of an existing relief amounting to 100%

There is no formal application process for CARF, as the council has conducted an exercise to identify those accounts where we believe the reduction is applicable. Please see the scheme document, in the related documents section of this page for further information. Revised notices showing awards of CARF have been issued to eligible businesses in September 2022.