Federal Member for Macquarie Susan Templeman has encouraged Hawkesbury businesses affected by flooding to apply for new funding to help them recover through BizRebuild, a Business Council of Australia initiative.

BizRebuild is offering two types of vouchers to provide on-the-ground assistance to help small businesses left devastated by bushfires and flooding.

“BizRebuild is offering $2,000 to replace tools, office equipment, laptops and other practical things lost in fires and floods that small businesses need to get back to work,” Ms Templeman said.

“There’s also a $500 voucher available for businesses to tap into local legal and accounting services to help cover the costs in drawing up business recovery plans.

“I met with the Chair, Sir Peter Cosgrove, following the floods, to discuss the great work BizRebuild is doing to help our local businesses recover. The BizRebuild team came back to the Hawkesbury this week to discuss the funding that’s available and what more might be needed.

“Elizabeth and Scott Sheridan also generously showed them the work they will need to do before people are able to come back onto their Hawkesbury Riverside Gardens van park.

“BizRebuild says that once a complete application is submitted, vouchers will be issued within three to five business days, and each voucher is valid for six months.

“There are no recommended suppliers, but the intent is to use other local businesses where possible. As Sir Peter said, our local businesses are the glue that keeps people in a community - standing by and allowing those vital businesses to fail would have a devastating effect on local communities.

“After the 2013 fires that took my home, where my office was located, I was very grateful for help from a similar program run through a business group. It made a huge difference in getting my business back up and running, and allowed me to buy a printer and essential office equipment.

“The March floods affected thousands of people across the Hawkesbury, and some local businesses are really feeling the loss of the families who have relocated outside the area either permanently or while the damage is repaired. This initiative can help make a difference to the lives of many.”

Businesses interested in accessing the funding should visit function openSocialShare(url) { const currentPageUrl = window.location.href; window.open(url + currentPageUrl); }