Are you looking to get back into employment?
We offer an Employment Support scheme that provides practical help and assistance to local people who want to find work.
Every person's journey into employment is different, so we provide 1:1 advice to help you overcome any barriers you may have, whether that's childcare issues, health problems, a lack of experience or simply not knowing where to start.
We
can also provide sound and accurate advice and guidance relating to welfare benefits and how employment impacts on current and future benefit entitlement.
To find out more email us at employmentsupport@midsussex.gov.uk
On-street parking permits go digital
On-street paper parking permits are being replaced with digital alternatives from this month in East Grinstead.
Digital parking permits are already used in car parks across Mid Sussex, but from 6 September 2022 they will also be used for Controlled Parking Zones in East Grinstead.
With digital permits there is no need to display anything in the vehicle window - drivers simply purchase the permit online and receive an email notification once it is active.
There are no Controlled Parking Zones in Burgess Hill, Haywards Heath, or any other parts of Mid Sussex, so on-street residential or business parking permits are not required there.
Traditional paper permits will remain valid until they expire, at which point motorists will move over to the new digital system if they choose to renew. Resident, visitor, and business permits are available for purchase at www.midsussex.gov.uk/parking-travel/parking-permits/
The move away from paper and plastic permits is designed to benefit the environment, remove the time it takes to post a physical permit and reduce the risk of loss or theft. Once registered online with MiPermit, drivers will be able to upload documents, including proof of residence and vehicle registration, check the status of their permit, update vehicle details and purchase or manage visitor permits. Civil Enforcement Officers will be able to confirm if a vehicle has a valid digital permit via the vehicle registration number.
Residents without online access will be able to request a paper application from our Parking Services Team by calling 01444 477212 (option 2) or by emailing parkinginfo@midsussex.gov.uk
Those with unused paper visitor permits will still be able to use them after 6 September.
Healthcare permits valid across West Sussex Controlled Parking Zones will still be issued by paper until the rest of the county has transferred to digital permits. This is expected to be within the next eight months.
For more information visit www.midsussex.gov.uk/parking-travel/welcome-to-digital-virtual-permits/
£3.4 million Covid-19 support grants for local businesses
We will be allocating £3.4 million this month to almost 700 local businesses that haven’t yet received any financial support during the Covid-19 pandemic.
The Covid-19 Additional Relief Fund (CARF) has been provided by the Government to support businesses that were not eligible for their main Business Grant support schemes.
Many businesses were unable to claim the first wave of Government Covid-19 support grants because they were specifically for businesses in receipt of Small Business Rate Relief and those working in the Retail, Hospitality and Leisure sectors.
The Covid-19 Additional Relief Fund applies to a much wider range of businesses such as small businesses in shared workspaces, market traders, Bed and Breakfast accommodation, charity properties and businesses in the supply chain to the Retail, Leisure and Hospitality sectors that did not qualify for the original government business grants.
Mid Sussex businesses were invited to apply for the Covid-19 Additional Relief Fund grants but so far only 74 businesses have submitted a claim. To ensure that local businesses don’t miss out on this crucial support, Mid Sussex District Council will be automatically paying the grants to eligible businesses from 19 September.
The Council will be writing to all eligible businesses in Mid Sussex to inform them about the upcoming Covid-19 Additional Relief Fund award. There is nothing that eligible businesses need to do, other than to look out for the relief shown on their business rates bill.
The Covid-19 Additional Relief Fund support payments are exclusively for businesses that have been affected by the pandemic but have not yet received any Covid-19 relief or discount support for their business rates from the Government.
Hire one of our pavilions
Are you looking for a venue for a business meeting, AGM small children's party or keep fit class?
Did you know the majority of our sports grounds have pavilions available for hire many with changing rooms and kitchen facilities too.
Visit https://bit.ly/3SpPhOU to find out more about our pavilions.
Email bookings@midsussex.gov.uk if you would like to make a booking enquiry, our Outdoor Leisure team will be happy to help.
Supporting businesses in Mid Sussex to start up, grow and adapt
We've been catching up with businesses who were supported by our grants over the past few years to hear how they are getting on.
The Covid pandemic and economic stress put unprecedented strain on the local Mid Sussex economy and the businesses operating within it. During that time the Council took every opportunity to support the local economy in a huge variety of ways.
Grant schemes have included MSDC funded Covid-19 Recovery Grants to support businesses to adapt and diversify supporting 42 businesses across the district; Store Improvement Grants, which allocated over £70,000 to support 24 independent retailers to enhance their business premises or make operational improvements; and a further 48 businesses and start-ups were supported with over £70,000 worth of Micro-business grant funding.
Projects to help support residents back to our high streets included Santa’s Secret Mission, Pop to the Shops and most recently subsidising independent traders to join ShopAppy.com along with Council funded grant schemes to support businesses to diversify, grow and even start-up.
Over the Summer we have been catching up with some of these businesses to understand a bit more about how the grant funding has helped their businesses. These included visits to local traders such as 7th Heaven Beauty Salon in East Grinstead where owner Ellie commented that “Mid Sussex, I felt, handled it better than a lot that I heard about, and the support was incredible. At the end of the phone they were really kind and understanding and the information was, I think, brilliant.”
MSDC’s Covid-19 Recovery Grant funding also helped support the following local businesses to adapt and recover.
The Fresh Fish Shop Ltd in Haywards Heath was awarded a grant towards the cost of e-commerce and marketing activity. Manging Director, Sebastian, commented “During the pandemic we wanted to ensure we could continue to serve the local community from our shop and offer a comprehensive online ordering and home delivery service for those who were self-isolating, shielding, or simply looking for a safer, convenient way of shopping for food. The development of our e-commerce site has introduced a new way of supplying our products to the local community, as well as highlighting the quality, sustainability, and availability of Sussex seafood to consumers nationwide.”
Mid Sussex Osteopaths was awarded a grant towards the cost of staff training to offer new services, marketing, and outreach work. Business owner Adam provided the following feedback: “It has helped push a lot of marketing forward which has accelerated our return to a reasonable level of service. It has also helped us reach out to the community more effectively and helped boost our skill set to offer more to the public.”
To find out more and apply for a Micro-business grant please visit www.midsussex.gov.uk/licensing-business/micro-business-grants