Newly Self-Employed Hardship Fund
24 April 2020, Advocates, Artists, Barristers, Creative Industries, General, Musicians, Sole Traders
Grants for newly self-employed
The Scottish Government has announced a £34 million Newly Self-Employed Hardship Fund. The fund will be managed by Local Authorities to allocate grants of £2,000 to the newly self-employed facing hardship. The self-employed who started trading after 5th April 2019 are excluded from the Self-Employment Income Support Scheme. The Scottish Government are working to address this gap in support for people who started self employment in the last year.
Newly Self-Employed Hardship Fund
It is hard enough starting up your own business at the best of times. Until now, people who have started up their business in last year have been excluded from any of the COVID-19 support packages. The announcement from the Scottish Government means that this neglected sector of the economy will finally be able to access support through grants of £2,000.
How do I claim a grant?
The recently self-employed, who are excluded from the UK’s scheme but suffering hardship, will be able to receive £2,000 grants. No information is available yet on the mechanism for claiming this. Fiona Hyslop announced that the grant funding will be open for applications by the end of April, and that recipients will receive funds in early May. She said: “This funding is intended to relieve the hardship of individuals and smaller firms that are ineligible for support from the UK Government or are not in receipt yet of the funds they need to survive.”
When will more information be available?
We are expecting an update by 30th April. Further details are now on the Alterledger website.
