British firms are still reporting high levels of reliance on government support schemes to help stem cashflow issues, according to a survey by the British Chambers of Commerce.

The organisation’s latest Coronavirus Business  Impact Tracker reveals that business conditions improved only moderately in the weeks since the UK economy suffered an historic contraction in Q2 2020.

Businesses are still facing significant cashflow challenges with the schemes announced in the Summer Statement failing to provide support at the scale needed to protect jobs after the furlough scheme winds down.

That’s one of the key findings of the latest Coronavirus Business Impact Tracker from the British Chambers of Commerce – the first comprehensive survey of business sentiment on the Chancellor’s Summer Statement announcements of July 8.

The majority of UK firms are in a position to partially restart operations as lockdown restrictions are eased, but one in ten said they would not be ready to implement guidance and restart operations, mainly citing social distancing as difficult.

Those are among the findings in the latest Coronavirus Business Impact Tracker from the British Chambers of Commerce.

Firms are ready for a gradual reopening of the economy but will need continued, adaptable government support during a phased return to work, according to the results of the latest Coronavirus Business Impact Tracker from the British Chambers of Commerce.

The seventh tranche of polling was conducted from 5 to 8 May, prior to the prime minister’s announcement on a roadmap to gradually ease lockdown restrictions and the launch of safe workplace guidance, and the Chancellor’s announcement on the extension of the Job Retention Scheme until the end of October.

The vast majority of UK firms say they will require three weeks or less to prepare to restart operations alongside any loosening of the UK lockdown. That’s the finding of the latest Coronavirus Business Impact Tracker from British Chambers of Commerce.

And smaller businesses may be able to restart operations more quickly: almost two-thirds (64 percent) of respondents employing fewer than 10 people say they would need less than one week, compared to half (50 percent) of respondents with more than 50 employees.

Businesses applying to the Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme are still finding the process too slow – but furlough scheme preventing redundancies.

That’s the verdict on two of the government’s initiatives to help businesses survive the Covid-19 pandemic, as reported to British Chambers of Commerce by UK businesses.

The vast majority of  businesses have furloughed a proportion of their workforce, and are awaiting funds from the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme as payday approaches for many, according to the results from the latest British Chambers of Commerce Coronavirus Business Impact Tracker.

The leading business organisation’s weekly tracker poll, which serves as a barometer of the pandemic’s impact on businesses and the effectiveness of government support measures, received 678 responses and is the largest independent survey of its kind in the UK.

The majority of businesses have now furloughed a proportion of their workforce, and are awaiting funds from the government’s Job Retention Scheme to enable them to pay staff, according to the results of the third Coronavirus Business Impact Tracker from British Chambers of Commerce.

The tracker reveals that 66 percent of survey respondents have furloughed staff in anticipation of scheme going live, but that more than half of firms (59 percent) have three months cash in reserve or less.

British businesses have reported a “sharp and significant fall” in revenues, according to the results of the first Coronavirus Business Impact Tracker.

The tracker was established by the British Chambers of Commerce, the national organisation whose membership includes Thames Valley Chamber of Commerce and Business West.