Tier three announcement reaction: BID Leamington calls on hospitality and leisure businesses in town to ‘make noise’ after it was kept in Tier 3 restrictions

Leamington, along with the rest of Warwickshire, Coventry and Solihull, has not been changed from its Tier 3 coronavirus restrictions in the government’s review before Christmas.

This means hospitality venues such as restaurants and pubs will have to stay shut to customers.

And with business-led organisation BID Leamington representing over 100 hospitality and leisure venues in the town, it will be launching the ‘Make Some Noise’ campaign to get the government to take notice of their plight.

Owners of hospitality businesses in Leamington will be encouraged to film themselves making plenty of noise with their tools of their trade, such as pots and pans, and upload it to social media using the hashtag #MakeSomeNoise from 11am on Friday December 18.

Frankie Griffiths, general manager of Leamington pub The Drawing Board and BID Leamington member, came up with the idea.

She said: “Existing grant funding is appreciated, but it is nowhere near enough to cover our costs when closed. Our fixed expenses are triple the cost of the grants, plus we are paying employer contributions on furloughed staff.

“We would like to see hospitality businesses up and down the country take our lead, pick up some pots and pans, and share their plight on social media so this message can travel all the way to London.”

And Stephanie Kerr, executive director of BID Leamington, agreed the current support for hospitality businesses was insufficient to keep them viable.

She said: “Leamington’s fantastic hospitality and leisure sector venues simply aren’t getting the support they need from the government. The measures currently in place are not going to save our businesses.

“The original announcement that we would be placed into Tier 3 was disappointing, and this latest announcement has made us even more determined to secure the support our hospitality venues need.

“While we completely understand the need to prioritise public health, our hospitality venues bear the brunt of these restrictions through no fault of their own, and all we ask is that the government support our brilliant businesses in a fair and proportionate manner.

“We are asking for larger grants to reasonably cover hospitality venues’ outgoings, to pause employer contributions to the furlough scheme, and to extend the lower rate of VAT and business rate freeze beyond March 2021.

“Without that support, there’s a strong possibility that not all will be able to keep trading into 2021, and we’d encourage businesses to join in with the #MakeSomeNoise campaign to send a message to the government.

“In the meantime, we would still encourage people to support retail businesses in Leamington by choosing to shop local or ordering from Leamington shops online.

“We are very grateful for the incredible support people have shown so far, and we hope that commitment to shopping local continues.”

BID Leamington’s calls come after the announcement of the ‘Bounce Back Better’ campaign, a nationwide plea for special support measures for retail, hospitality and leisure businesses.

The campaign is asking for a one-off grant of £15,000 for those businesses in Tier 2 and 3 with a rateable value of up to £150,000, and a pause on National Insurance employer contributions for furloughed employees.

It is also seeking an extension of the 100 per cent business rates holiday and the VAT reduction scheme.

Town centre businesses in need of information and support can make contact with the BID team at [email protected] or go to www.bidleamington.com.

To find out how to support businesses by shopping local, visit www.loveleamington.com and follow @LeamingtonGuide.