Cumbria Chamber of Commerce says it has been inundated with enquiries from businesses struggling to cope with Covid-19.

More than 5,600 have used the chamber’s coronavirus toolkit and other online resources.

Rob Johnston, the chamber's chief executive, said it had a record 4,500 downloads of its podcasts on offer, with its essential coronavirus podcast leading the way.

It has also added information about a new package for the self-employed and detailed information on how the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme will work to its toolkit.

The chamber’s head office in Carlisle is closed but staff are working from home to deal with enquiries.

Mr Johnston added: “In many cases, businesses can use the toolkit to answer their questions – that’s what it’s designed to do.

“But we’re getting calls from businesses seeking clarification on whether they should be open or looking to understand the details of the Government’s loan and grant schemes.

“We’re also feeding information from our coronavirus survey to help the British Chambers of Commerce lobby the Government.

“The British Chambers of Commerce was proactive in calling for help for the self-employed and pressing for the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme to cover employers’ National Insurance and pension contributions, as well as wages, which we now know it will.

“Currently, we’re in talking to the banks to get them to release cash under the Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan scheme as quickly as possible.

“Cumbria has had more than its fair shares of crises in recent years, from foot and mouth to floods, but we’ve never experienced anything on this scale."

Visit www.cumbriachamber.co.uk/news/27976-coronavirus-what-businesses-need-to-know