Wrexham Businessline

The following articles have been sourced from the regular email newsletters produced by Wrexham County Borough Council’s Business and Investment team, which provide updates on the availability of new funding and support initiatives, changes in regulations and resources which may be of interest to businesses within the County Borough.

ReAct funding is still available

Organisations looking to or considering recruiting a new member of staff are still able to benefit from the ReAct programme. You will receive up to £3,000 in quarterly instalments for the first 12 months, to help cover the new recruit’s wages. In addition, up to £1,000 can be accessed for any jobrelated skills training needed to bring the new recruit up to speed.

To qualify for the programme the person you wish to recruit must either:

• Be under formal Notice of Redundancy or

• Be within 12 months of the date of redundancy or

• Be within 12 months of becoming unemployed for reasons other than redundancy https://businesswales.gov.wales

New jobs programme to create life-changing opportunities for 16-18 year olds in Wales

The Welsh Government have announced that in 2022 a new Jobs Growth Wales+ programme will launch, which will focus on helping young people (aged 16-18), who are not in education, employment or training, to reach their full potential and take their first steps into the world of work.

https://gov.wales

Get ready for Plastic Packaging Tax: does the tax affect the goods you import?

Does your business manufacture or import plastic packaging? If so, you will be able to sign-up for HMRC’s Plastic Packaging Tax (PPT) webinars to learn more about what you need to do before the tax comes into force on 1 April 2022.

An Overview of the Plastic Packaging Tax

The tax aims to encourage the use of recycled plastic instead of new plastic within plastic packaging. It will be charged at a rate of £200 per tonne on plastic packaging manufactured in or imported into the UK, including packaging that already contains goods when it is imported, such as bottles filled with drinks.

If all the plastic packaging that you manufacture or import contains at least 30% recycled plastic, you will not need to pay the tax, but you may still need to register.

To find out more visit www.gov.uk

Dedicated hotline and online service now available for UK exporters

On 1 October the Department for International Trade (DIT) launched a new export hotline and online service. British businesses exporting, or those considering exporting, to Europe will now be able to access one-to-one advice. From queries around rules of origin, to guidance on recognising professional qualifications and entering new markets, the Export Support Service provides a single point of contact to help exporters navigate a range of complex information simply and quickly. https://www.gov.uk/ask-exportsupport-team

Help

support your staff’s financial resilience and wellbeing

The financial vulnerability of individuals with little or no savings has been highlighted during the course of the Coronavirus pandemic. This has of course had a direct impact and detrimental effect on the wellbeing of those concerned. In an effort to help improve people’s resilience, the Welsh Government are encouraging employers to partner with a credit union in order to offer work-based payroll savings (which are simple to set-up) and access to affordable credit. Doing so would provide an effective means of helping employees to build a financial safety net, with worries and anxieties about money being reduced as individuals would be in a better position to be able to cope with temporary financial challenges in the future. If you would like to sign up to offer a payroll savings scheme to your employees, you’ll be able to identify your local credit union via the following link, or alternatively email enquiries@creditunionsofwales.co.uk for further information. https://creditunionsofwales.co.uk/ payroll-partners/

Flexible Plastic Fund

The Flexible Plastic Fund looks to improve the rate of recycling of 'flexible' plastic items including bags, wrappers, films, pouches, packets and sachets. Funding and support is being made available to incentivise recycling. For further information and to find out how manufacturers, retailers, recyclers and individuals can join the fund, visit: https://flexibleplasticfund.org.uk/ about-the-fund

Pub is the HubCommunity Services Fund

Pub is the Hub encourages rural pub owners, licensees, and their local communities to work together to support, retain and locate local services which may have already been lost – such as a local shop, library, post office or community centre – where possible, within the pub.

Access to experts in the licencing trade can be provided, with a grant of up to £3,000 also being made available. For further information and to access an expression of interest form, please visit: https://www.pubisthehub.org.uk/ community-services-fund/

Town Centre Entrepreneurship Fund

A town centre entrepreneurship fund has been made available by the Welsh Government for new pre-revenue startup businesses, and some existing businesses (that qualify) looking to relocate or occupy premises in Wrexham Town Centre. The scheme is being managed and delivered by Business Wales. Grants of between £2,500 and £10,000 can be provided, which can be used towards revenue costs when starting up in or relocating to the town centre. Applicants need to be able to demonstrate a minimum of

100% match funding for the grant through savings, loans etc. Further information can be found at Business Wales www.businesswales.gov.wales

If you would like to receive a copy of Wrexham County Borough Council’s Business and Investment team’s regular newsletters, you can sign up via:

English: https://bit.ly/business-updateswrexham

Welsh: https://bit.ly/diweddariadau-busneswrecsam

For more information on any of these articles, or to find out how Wrexham County Borough Council’s Business and Investment Team can support pre-start, new and established businesses based in or looking to re-locate to Wrexham please email: business@wrexham.gov.uk or telephone: 01978 667000