DORSET Council says it has now paid out more than £100 million coronavirus support to just over 8,000 small businesses in the county.

The local authority was given around £134 million from Government to distribute to businesses from the retail, hospitality and leisure sector in the Dorset Council area, which have been adversely affected by the impact of Covid-19.

Cllr Gary Suttle, Dorset Council’s member for economic growth and skills, said: “To have paid out over £100 million to thousands of businesses in the Dorset Council area in such a short space of time is a real achievement.

"We drafted-in colleagues from across the organisation to help when we realised what a huge task this was, handed to us from Government.

"The team has worked tirelessly to get these much-needed cash injections to businesses, and I would like to take this opportunity to say thank you to them.

“We still have £28 million to distribute to Dorset businesses that meet the criteria, and we would appeal to business owners who have not yet applied for a grant through this funding to please do so at www.dorsetcouncil.gov.uk/business-grants.”

For businesses not eligible for this first round of funding, there are more grants available, through the council’s discretionary fund. However, there is only a short time left to apply, the deadline is midnight on Sunday 14 June.

So far, the council has received around 1,700 applications for this funding.

A Dorset Council spokesman said: "The discretionary fund is specifically aimed at businesses who have not yet received any previous Covid- related Government financial support."

Visit dorsetcouncil.gov.uk/discretionary-fund if you are a business that wants to check eligibility and apply.