Wrexham Council has given out over £33 million of Welsh Government grants and payments since the pandemic started.
Councils across Wales have been at the forefront in administering grant schemes and other financial packages provided by Welsh Government – offering vital support to households and businesses affected by the economic impact of the virus.
Councillor Mark Pritchard, Leader of the Council, says:
“It’s been a huge undertaking, and I’d like to say thank you to the council’s Finance and ICT, Housing and Economy, Education and Social Care departments for a tremendous team effort and stepping up to meet the challenge.
“I’m glad we’ve been able to play our part in administering this money, which has helped so many local people and businesses.
“We all know it’s been an incredibly tough year in so many ways, and these grants and payments have helped keep many households and businesses afloat.”
What we’ve paid out so far (as of December 1)
Welsh Government money we’ve paid out so far includes:
- £1.5 million in free school meal payments.
- £2.3 million in £500 bonus payments to 3,458 carers.
- £25 million in support grants to 2,133 local business in respect of the first lockdown period.
- £3.7 million in support grants to 1,222 businesses during the ‘firebreak’ lockdown (October).
- £225k in start-up grants to 90 businesses.
- £158k in freelancer grants to 63 businesses.
- £591k in firebreak discretionary grants to 330 businesses.
As well as grants, we’ve also provided support in many other ways to local business owners.
Examples include rent holidays earlier this year for council market-stall traders and commercial tenants, as well as maintaining payments to school transport providers.
Councillor David Bithell, Deputy Leader of the Council says:
“The payments and other support given out by the council – including the grants from Welsh Government – have hopefully made life a little easier during these uncertain times.
“And for some people, they’ve provided a real lifeline.
“We’ll keep doing everything we can to support households and local business who’ve felt the financial impact of this global pandemic.”
Download the Covid-19 NHS app…and help keep Wrexham safe.
[button color=”” size=”large” type=”square_outlined” target=”new” link=” https://www.covid19.nhs.uk/”]DOWNLOAD THE NHS APP[/button]
