AGENDA A MESSAGE FROM SHEFFIELD CITY COUNCIL CLEARING THE AIR

As of Monday 27 February, Sheffield’s Clean Air Zone (CAZ) is now being enforced in the designated city centre area.

What is it?

The CAZ is a Class C charging zone, which means that some vehicles driving within, or entering, Sheffield’s inner ring road and city centre that do not meet vehicle emission limits set by the Government will be charged.

Who will be charged?

Only the most heavily polluting vehicles will be charged for entering Sheffield’s CAZ. Private vehicles, motorcycles and lower-polluting vehicles will not have to pay.

Vehicles that will be charged include heavy goods vehicles (HGV), light goods vehicles (LGV), vans, buses, coaches and taxis.

How do I check if my vehicle will be charged?

You can check whether your vehicle will be charged, using the Government checker at www.gov.uk/clean-air-zones (or scan the QR code on this page). If the vehicle you own is compliant, then you do not need to do anything. If your vehicle is not compliant, and you drive into, out of, or within the zone, then you need to pay each day you travel.

How much will I need to pay?

Charges are:

• £50 per day for larger vehicles – such as buses, coaches and HGVs

• £10 per day for smaller vehicles – such as taxis and LGVs

• Larger campervans / motorhomes can apply for a discounted rate, reducing the charge amount to £10 If you’re entering the zone you can pay up to 6 days in advance, on the day, or up to 6 days after your journey. For information and a simple and secure way to pay, head to www.gov.uk/cleanair-zones

Financial support

Financial support to upgrade or replace a vehicle to meet CAZ standards is still available for vehicle owners based in

Sheffield and Rotherham.

Local exemptions and discounts are also still available, please visit the website (sheffield.gov.uk) for further information on how to apply.

An automatic, temporary exemption will be applied for Hackney Carriage vehicles licensed by the Council, up to 00:00 on Monday 5 June 2023.

You do not need to apply for an exemption if your vehicle is one of the following:

• Nationally exempt

• Meets required emission standards

• A private car or motorbike

Why does Sheffield need a CAZ?

Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs’ (DEFRA) latest assessments show that Sheffield is not compliant with the annual limit for nitrogen dioxide (NO2). That’s why we urgently need to reduce NO2 levels around the city.

The CAZ will take us a step closer to cleaner air and higher standard of health for local people, especially those most vulnerable to pollution related health issues, such as the elderly, un-born babies and young children. Air pollution contributes to around 1 in 20 of deaths in Sheffield each year.

The city’s Clean Air Zone is part of a national Clean Air Strategy funded by DEFRA, to tackle air pollution, including roadside nitrogen dioxide concentrations.

To learn more about the CAZ please visit the website: www.sheffield.gov. uk/cleanair SCAN

The CAZ will take us a step closer to cleaner air and higher standard of health for local people, especially those most vulnerable to pollution related health issues, such as the elderly, un-born babies and young children. Air pollution contributes to around 1 in 20 of deaths in Sheffield each year

SMH GROUP: CLEAN AIR ZONE

As Sheffield City Centre becomes a clear air zone, it is important for vehicle owners to consider the impact their cars and vans may have on the environment. The good news is that the local government is offering financial support to upgrade or replace polluting vehicles.

At SMH Group, a leading firm of Chartered Accountants and Business Advisers in Sheffield, we are committed to helping individuals and businesses navigate the process of applying for this financial support.

HERE’S WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW:

Who does this affect?

Sheffield’s Clean Air Zone affects certain types of commercial vehicles that do not meet the minimum emissions standards set by the UK government.

Specifically:

• Buses and coaches: Euro 6 standard or better

• Heavy goods vehicles (HGVs): Euro 6 standard or better

• Taxis and private hire vehicles: Euro 6 standard or better

• Light goods vehicles

(LGVs): Euro 6 standard or better

• Cars and vans: Euro 6 standard for diesel vehicles, Euro 4 standard for petrol vehicles or better

Vehicles that meet these emissions standards can travel in and out of the Sheffield Clean Air Zone without incurring any charges or penalties. However, vehicles that do not meet these standards may need to pay a daily charge to enter the zone, or take steps to upgrade or replace their vehicles to meet the minimum emissions standards.

Private cars and motorbikes will not be affected.

What is the financial support?

Sheffield City Council is providing financial support for individuals and businesses who need to upgrade or replace a polluting vehicle. This financial support is available in the form of grants or interest-free loans.

Who is eligible for financial support?

To be eligible for financial support, you must meet the following criteria:

• Your vehicle must be registered within the Sheffield City Council boundary

• Your vehicle must be non-compliant with the Sheffield City Council’s Clean Air Zone emission standards

• You must have owned your vehicle for at least 6 months prior to the application

• You must not have received financial support from another source for the same vehicle

How much financial support can I receive?

The amount of financial support you can receive depends on the type of vehicle you are upgrading or replacing, as well as the type of financial support you are applying for. In general, grants are available for smaller vehicles such as cars, while interest-free loans are available for larger vehicles such as vans.

How do I apply for financial support?

To apply for financial support, you will need to fill out an application form on the Sheffield City Council website. The application process will require you to provide information about your vehicle, your

Vehicles that meet these emissions standards can travel in and out of the Sheffield Clean Air Zone without incurring any charges or penalties

ownership of the vehicle, and your intended upgrade or replacement.

It is important to note that the application process can be complex, and it may be helpful to seek the advice of a financial professional like SMH Group.

Let SMH Group advise you on the process

At SMH Group, we are committed to helping individuals and businesses navigate the process of applying for financial support to upgrade or replace a polluting vehicle in relation to the Sheffield City Council’s Clean Air Zone.

We can provide guidance on the application process, as well as other financial considerations related to this important issue.

To learn more, please contact us on 0114 266 4432, info@smh.group or visit our website www. smh.group for further information about our complete range of financial services to businesses and individuals.

In a new monthly column, unLTD chats to a local charity’s founder to delve into why they set up the organisation. This month, Ash Birch caught up with Clynton Johnson, cofounder of Eve Merton Dreams Trust, a Doncaster-based charity who help to make dreams come true for cancer patients in the region…

Can you start by telling us how charity began?

It's named after Eve Merton, who passed away in 2011, of ovarian cancer. When Eve was given three months to live, her family, including her son, Martin, who is co-founder of the charity, set about getting Eve a chair that could help lift her up and an electric bed.

They applied to one of the bigger national charities for funding, which was unfortunately a 16-page form that families don’t really need and shouldn’t be going through when they’re dealing with a traumatic experience. In the end, they only received £360 of a possible £500–£600 as they didn’t see Eve as priority enough to get the full amount.

Because of this, some staff who worked with Martin at BT held a fundraiser to raise the money to buy these things for Eve and that’s what triggered mine and Martin’s conversations. I was at a stage of life where I really wanted to do something for charities. I’ve always been interested in running marathons and I had just stopped playing football, so I needed to fill my time.

My wife went to school with

Martin, so we were friends, and I became intrigued by the charity work he was doing and decided I would really like to do something more than just run a marathon. We sat down after Eve had passed and came up with the idea of starting a cancer charity that was available to all Doncaster residents battling cancer. Where it didn’t matter what age you were, or what kind of cancer it was, you just needed to be a Doncaster resident with a cancer diagnosis and the service would be available to you.

So, how does it work?

Firstly, we discuss how we can provide a wish for families who apply to the service, which takes around five minutes to complete – we wanted to make that as simple as possible!

Once we’ve received all the information, it’s passed to our dream makers who look at what the person would like to do, dates, who wants to go etc. and discuss what’s feasible within the budget.

We usually budget around £600-£650 per dream, which, as you can imagine, is quite tough sometimes, so it’s often dependent on how local businesses can help us, or if anyone else is willing to fund the dream, which has happened sometimes.

The dreams can be anything from a trip away for the weekend to a hot tub, renewing wedding vows, actual weddings, trips to London, parties... you name it, we’ve probably had a request for it! It’s then our job to make that happen for the families. So far, we’ve done six weddings, we’ve got a charity caravan in Skegness that families can use for respite, and we’re currently working on a memorial garden in Doncaster, because of how many people we lost during Covid.

How did Covid affect the charity?

The terminal application rate of cancer pre-Covid was about 20-25%; post Covid, the rate is at 85% and we’ve lost 39 people who used our service over the last two and a half years alone, which is more than double the nine years prior to that combined. As a small charity, things shifted dramatically after Covid. We were obviously restricted as to what fundraising we could do, so it was a very difficult time. But we’ve got through it.

How can businesses help?

What we’ve started doing more recently with local businesses is getting them to help with volunteering down at the memorial garden, doing fundraising or donating materials, as, at the end of the day, that’s serving the local community. Again, it’s about awareness. It’s highly likely that members of staff, or someone within the organisation, are going to need us, or know somebody that needs us. Getting that information out there is still is one of the biggest tasks.

Eve Merton Dream Trust has been a registered charity for around 11 years and has raised close to £1 million in funds in that time. All of their fundraising efforts go into paying for the dreams, with none of the donations going towards paying for staffing. As well as the Memorial Garden, they are currently organising their next fundraising walk from Weston Park Hospital to Doncaster Royal Infirmary in July, and to get involved with any of their efforts, or to appy for a wish, head to their website at www. evestrust. co.uk