A one-million-pound fund to boost Scotland’s self-catering sector as it recovers from the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic has been unveiled.
The fund will be delivered through a partnership between the Association of Scotland’s Self-Caterers (ASSC) and VisitScotland to those businesses which have been unable to benefit from any financial support during the Covid-19 crisis.
Successful applicants will be eligible to receive a one-off grant of £10,000. Applications for the fund will go live on Monday 3 August for 7 days before closing on Monday 10 August.
Scotland’s national tourism organisation will administer the cash through a central email system and will take responsibility for getting the money to the operators who need it. The ASSC will review applications and help make decisions on which applications are successful.
As the funding programme for the sector gets under way, the two organisations will work together through a series of virtual meetings and discussions to get the sector the help it needs.
Scotland’s self-caterers were among the first to shut down their businesses as the country went into lockdown, with operators making significant financial and personal sacrifices as part of the effort against COVID-19. Many also played a key role in supporting frontline health workers during the pandemic, providing free or discounted stays for NHS staff.
Throughout the pandemic, the ASSC worked tirelessly to ensure that Scotland’s hardworking operators were not left behind in terms of accessing business support grants. Alongside work to remove inequities in the system, this new fund for self-caterers is the culmination of those assiduous efforts.
ASSC Chief Executive, Fiona Campbell, said:
“The ASSC has doggedly and persistently fought the corner of our members on business support grants. We are therefore delighted to see this fund being launched and welcome everything that it will do to help Scotland’s £723m self-catering sector.
“Scotland’s self-caterers have sacrificed so much to help the country suppress the virus and we will continue to do our bit to keep everyone safe now that the tourism sector has reopened to visitors.
“The ASSC is also thrilled to be working with our trusted, valued, and cherished partners at VisitScotland and we can’t wait to get started to get the funds to deserving, professional self-catering businesses.”