Building Briefs – March 31st

  • Mactaggart & Mickel boosts Sikh community food bank

Housebuilder Mactaggart & Mickel has handed £500 to ‘The Sikh Food Bank’, a new Sikhs in Scotland project created to help people left most vulnerable by the coronavirus pandemic.

Building Briefs – March 31st

Dr Charandeep Singh

The Glasgow-based firm rallied behind project as media reports suggested supermarket panic-buyers had left food banks in danger of being denied essential everyday items.



And because that meant some families might have to go without the likes of rice, tinned food and toilet roll, Mactaggart & Mickel donated £500 from its Building Communities Fund to The Sikh Food Bank charity which is helping people from any community or background across Scotland.

The donation will help the volunteer-led Sikh Food Bank, launched last Saturday, respond to the growing needs of elderly people and struggling families.

As well as the delivery of food parcels to people in self-isolation and those struggling to make ends meet, the charity has set up a welfare support line to help people on a range of issues including childcare support, employment rights and health advice.

Joanne Casey, director at Mactaggart & Mickel, said: “The coronavirus pandemic is having a profound impact on people throughout our communities right across Scotland and we’re facing unprecedented challenges.



“But the crisis has also brought out the best in people who are determined to unite with the most vulnerable and that’s especially the case with The Sikh Food Bank volunteers who clearly have hearts of gold.

“Like Mactaggart & Mickel, they care passionately about people from all walks of life across Scottish communities and that’s why we had no hesitation but to respond to their request for help with a donation, confident every penny will help.”

The donation was warmly welcomed by Dr Charandeep Singh who is spearheading the team of volunteers at The Sikh Food Bank.

Mr Singh, who is also deputy chief executive of the Scottish Chambers of Commerce, said: “On behalf of The Sikh Food Bank, I would like to thank the wonderful people at Mactaggart & Mickel for their very generous donation.



“We are seeing first-hand how the coronavirus pandemic is hitting local communities, particularly the elderly and vulnerable.

“That’s why we have mobilised quickly to deliver food parcels and essential items to those most in need. This donation will help us to reach more families and individuals who need vital support in this urgent time of need.”

 

  • Hammerson sees rents drop amid coronavirus crisis

Hammerson, the retail property company which owns Aberdeen’s Union Square and Glasgow’s Silverburn, has seen a major slump in rents, as two-thirds of the rent it expected to collect last week was not sent due to the economic impact of the coronavirus pandemic.



Building Briefs – March 31st

The lack of rent payments comes as retailers and businesses around the UK were forced to close their doors due to the UK government’s COVID-19 lockdown measures.

Hammerson has revealed that by Friday last week, just two days after the usual rent payment deadline, it had only been paid 37% of the rent that it was billed in the UK for the second quarter of the financial year.

After removing rent that had been waived, deferred or switched to monthly payments, the figure rises to 57% of what the company was due.



Hammerson expected to gather more money as it puts temporary agreements in place with retailers.

The drop in rent payments arrives just a month after the Hammerson reported that its pre-tax losses dropped to £573.8 million in the year to December 31st.

Similarly, Intu, the owner of the Braehead complex near Glasgow, revealed last week that it was only received 29% of the rent payments due to the company.

In a trading update, Hammerson said: “In this period of unprecedented disruption, our priority is and will always remain the health and wellbeing of our colleagues, consumers and partners, whilst protecting the long-term value of the Company.



“In these circumstances, we believe we should support our occupiers, particularly smaller and independent brands that are less resilient to the closure of their space in our centres. We have received a variety of requests for rent deferrals, monthly payments, and waivers, which we are reviewing on a case-by-case basis, taking into account the business model and risk profile of the occupier, alongside the aid made available by the relevant governments.”

Following the announcement, Hammerson said that given the current COVID-19 situation, the board decided that it will no longer recommend the final dividend of 14.8p per share for the financial year ended 31 December 2019.

It added that the resolution relating to the proposed 2019 final dividend will consequently not be put to a shareholder vote at the AGM on 28 April.

Hammerson said that it would continue to closely monitor the developing situation and update the market as appropriate.



 

  • Business Improvement Districts to support coronavirus recovery with £1m fund

Many Business Improvement Districts (BIDs) in Scotland will be at the forefront of the local response to the COVID-19 outbreak through a £1 million resilience fund made available by the Aileen Campbell, cabinet secretary for communities and local government.

Building Briefs – March 31st

Phil Prentice, chief officer of Scotland's Towns Partnership and programme director of Scotland's Improvements Districts

Business Improvement Districts are collaborative business improvement projects whereby local businesses vote to establish a company to deliver joint economic and business development initiatives from a shared fund. Local businesses agree to pay an additional levy on top of their business rates to pay for projects that will improve the local economy and business outcomes for businesses and communities alike.



There are 37 active BIDs across Scotland with many more in the pipeline.

Alongside the package of measures to support businesses, including a suspension of business rates for some businesses, the Scottish Government and Scotland’s Improvement Districts, the national centre for BIDs, have suggested that local authorities should not collect the BID levy during the current COVID-19 crisis, while the £1 million funding package will allow many BIDs to play a vital role in supporting local businesses and town centres during these challenging times.

As part of the COVID-19 BIDs Resilience Fund, administered through Scotland’s Improvement Districts, many BIDs across Scotland will be able to apply for funding to support local businesses by signposting to, and supporting them to avail of, the Government support that is available and coordinate a response at a local level to keep the local economy moving. 

BIDs will support local businesses to find new and innovative ways to maintain trading, and support other community initiatives to help more vulnerable people. In addition, they will commence preparations for a locally-led recovery campaign to help local town centres bounce back once the Government’s social distancing rules have been relaxed.

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