BUSINESSES are being urged to apply for grants from West Oxfordshire District Council (WODC).

The process has been simplified with two forms now to be filled in.

These cover the latest lockdown grants as well as those relating to previous restrictions in force since November.

Business owners that have applied for a grant since November do not need to reapply by completing another form.

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Instead, they are being contacted by email and asked to indicate which grants they believe they are entitled to.

Their eligibility will then be assessed by the council revenues team.

Toby Morris, cabinet member for resources at WODC, said: “We know how worried businesses have been about these grants as they face having little or no income.

“We have made the applications process as simple and as easy as possible for businesses so these applications are not another worry in a challenging time.

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“We will do our very best to process these grants as quickly as possible and get this financial lifeline out to our communities.

“I would urge business owners to respond to their emails swiftly to help us speed up the payment process or act quickly to fill in an application form if they haven’t previously done so.”

WODC has also extended the discretionary grant eligibility to include taxi drivers and tenanted pubs.

Since the pandemic started, WODC has distributed 3055 grants, totalling more than £29 million in funding to local businesses.