Putting melted lead in starch is off for the present time (9)
I believe the answer is:
christmas
'present time' is the definition.
(time for giving and receiving presents)
'putting melted lead in starch is off for the' is the wordplay.
I cannot quite see how this works, but
'is' is within the answer.
'the' could be 't' (the is pronounced as a 't' sound in some dialects) and 't' is found within the answer.
This explanation may well be incorrect...
(Other definitions for christmas that I've seen before include "&14 Former name of Kiritimati Island" , "Holy festival" , "SECOND PART OF 1 ACROSS" , "Christian festival" , "Seasonal surprise!" .)