Free Covid tests for employees of small businesses and charities are still available. The scheme to apply to have free workplace Covid testing for your employees closes on the 31st March. You need to be registered in England (there are different schemes elsewhere in the UK) and for your employees not to be able to work from home. The type of test provided are lateral flow tests.
Applying as a small business
Small businesses that are limited companies can apply to join the scheme online here. You will need:
- The name of the company
- The company registration number
- an email address
Applying as a charity
Charities (and sole traders and partnerships) can also join the scheme but need to contact the scheme via email, p-and-psector@dhsc.gov.uk.
You will need to send
- your organisation’s name
- your registration number
- how many employees you have
- an email address
- the industry or sector of your organisation (e.g. that it is a charity)
Is home working a better option?
Remember that for many businesses and charities it has been possible to operate from home and if your staff are able to do so they should continue to do so. If there is a work reason why they need to come in to the workplace or visit clients, it is worth considering combining this with still allowing home working. However, where your staff are required to come into the office this free workplace Covid testing scheme is well worth considering.
Further reading
You may also be interested in this blog post on helping your employees by either making a tax free payments for working from home or ensuring they get a tax break for doing so.