Asked by: Andrew Snowden (Conservative - Fylde)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps her Department is planning to take to ensure that the Creative Foundations Fund is allocated (a) efficiently and (b) equitably across regions.
Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The Creative Foundations Fund will invest £85 million to support arts and cultural organisations across England to resolve urgent issues with their estates. The fund was developed in partnership with ACE, drawing on its knowledge of the arts and culture sector. With urgent need for this funding, the Creative Foundations Fund will support organisations ready to commence capital works in taking this vital step. All applicants will be notified of the outcome of their full application and funding committed by Arts Council England by 31 March 2026.
We understand the scale of need being felt across the country after fourteen years of underinvestment by the previous Government. Theis Government is encouraging organisations across the country to apply for a share of the fund, including theatres, performing arts venues, galleries, grassroots music venues and contemporary arts centres. Funding will be distributed to ensure maximum impact across England, supporting the Government’s Plan for Change which aims to support economic growth and increase opportunities for people across the country.
Asked by: Andrew Snowden (Conservative - Fylde)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps she is taking to ensure that Fylde constituency will be affected by the Creative Industries Sector Plan, announced on 23 June 2025.
Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
DCMS recognises that there are creative industries clusters and micro clusters in every part of the UK, all of which are crucial to the delivery of our Growth Mission.
The new 10-year plan will tackle barriers to growth and maximise opportunities across the Creative Industries sector, with the aim of making the UK the number one destination for creativity and innovation by 2035. It contains a range of new measures including supporting access to finance, innovation and skills which will benefit creative businesses across the UK, including in the Fylde constituency.
Asked by: Andrew Snowden (Conservative - Fylde)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what funding is available for (a) local authorities and (b) other organisations to (i) maintain and (ii) develop (A) heritage and (B) leisure buildings.
Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
Organisations are able to apply for funding to maintain and develop heritage buildings through the Department for Culture, Media and Sport’s Arms-Length Bodies.
The National Lottery Heritage Fund awards grants ranging from £3,000 to over £5 million for projects that conserve and enhance heritage, making it accessible to everyone. Last year it invested £330 million. Historic England, the government’s statutory advisor on the historic environment, offers grants for the repair and conservation of historic buildings, monuments, and landscapes that are of national importance.
In February of this year, the Secretary of State announced an additional £20 million in funding for the heritage sector, more than doubling the support for Heritage at Risk to £15 million.The Architectural Heritage Fund is delivering the £4.85m Heritage Revival Fund, which supports community organisations to take ownership of, adapt and reuse heritage assets. In addition, DCMS directly funds the Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme, which provides grants towards VAT paid on repairs and maintenance to the nation's listed places of worship.
The Government provides the majority of funding for grassroots sport through our Arm’s Length Body, Sport England - which annually invests over £250 million in Exchequer and Lottery funding in areas of greatest need to tackle inactivity levels through community-led solutions. Additional funding for grassroots sport facilities is also provided through the Multi-Sport Grassroots Facilities Programme, which is delivering £98 million in funding across the UK in 2025/26.
Asked by: Andrew Snowden (Conservative - Fylde)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, whether her Department has made funding available for the repair of public amenities damaged during Storm Arwen.
Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
We have not made specific funding available for public amenities damaged during Storm Arwen, but responsibilities for public amenities fall to many departments, each of which has different arrangements for repairs. DCMS, for instance, funds Arts Council England to deliver the Museum Estate and Development Fund, which is open to accredited museums across England and has distributed over £87m since 2021, with a further £25m due to be allocated in 25/26.
Asked by: Andrew Snowden (Conservative - Fylde)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, whether she is providing additional funding for local authorities to help (a) maintain and (b) develop leisure facilities.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The Government recognises the importance of ensuring public access to leisure facilities which are vital spaces for people of all ages to stay fit and healthy, and which play an important role within communities.
The ongoing responsibility of providing access to public leisure facilities lies at local authority level with funding levels set by MHCLG as part of the Local Government Finance Settlement. The Government encourages local authorities to make investments which offer the right opportunities and facilities for the communities they serve, investing in sport and physical activity with a place-based approach, to meet the needs of individual communities.
The majority of Government funding for grassroots sport clubs is through our Arm’s Length Body, Sport England, which invests over £250 million in Exchequer and Lottery funding each year.
On 20 June 2025, the Culture Secretary announced that following the Spending Review, at least £400 million is going to be invested into new and upgraded grassroots sport facilities in communities right across the UK, supporting the Government's Plan for Change. We will now work closely with sporting bodies and local leaders to establish what each community needs and then set out further plans.
Asked by: Andrew Snowden (Conservative - Fylde)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, how many schools engaged with Historic England’s Heritage Schools Programme in each region in the most recent academic year for which data is available.
Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The most recent academic year for which DCMS holds data is September 2023 - July 2024. 582 schools have engaged with Historic England’s Heritage Schools Programme, with approximately 116,400 children participating.
The regional breakdown is as follows:
Region | No. of schools | Approx. no. of children benefitting |
East | 90 | 18,000 |
Midlands | 221 | 44,200 |
North East & Yorkshire | 135 | 27,000 |
North West | 48 | 9,600 |
South West | 88 | 17,600 |
Total | 582 | 116,400 |
There was no delivery in London and the South East in the 2023-24 academic year, however Historic England are supporting Surrey Museums to run a Heritage Schools programme in their area this year.
Asked by: Andrew Snowden (Conservative - Fylde)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, pursuant to the Answer of 16 June 2025 to Question 59074 on Multi-Sport Grassroots Facilities Programme: Lancashire, which three projects received funding from the Multi-Sport Grassroots Facilities Programme in Fylde constituency in the 2023-25 financial year.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The three projects in the constituency of Fylde that have benefited from Multi-Sport Grassroots Facilities Programme investment during the 2024/25 financial year are:
Park View Road Playing Fields,
William Pickles Sport Ground
Roseacre Road Playing Fields
The two projects in the constituency of Fylde that have benefited from Multi-Sport Grassroots Facilities Programme investment during the 2023/34 financial year are:
Staining Village Hall
Cottam Hall
All projects received grant awards for new goalposts.
On 9 June 2025, the Government published an updated list of completed MSGF projects across the UK, which can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/multi-sport-grassroots-facilities-programme-projects-2021-to-2025.
Asked by: Andrew Snowden (Conservative - Fylde)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, with reference to the Written Statement of 9 June 2025 on Grassroots Sport Facilities, HCWS689, how many projects have been funded by the Multi-Sport Grassroots Facilities Programme in (a) Fylde constituency and (b) Lancashire.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The Government is committed to ensuring that everyone, regardless of where they live, has access to and benefits from quality sport and physical activity opportunities.
The Government provides the majority of funding for grassroots sport through our Arm’s Length Body, Sport England - which annually invests over £250 million in Exchequer and Lottery funding in areas of greatest need to tackle inactivity levels through community-led solutions.
Our Muli-Sport Grassroots Facilities Programme invests in new and upgraded facilities across the UK to benefit communities and help get people active. In 2024/25, Fylde received £10,108 across three projects, and Lancashire received £1,872,565 across 49 projects. In March, DCMS confirmed an additional £100 million investment over the coming year (of which £98m falls in Financial Year 2025/26). .
Beneficiaries of this 2025/26 funding are still to be confirmed and will be announced in due course.
Asked by: Andrew Snowden (Conservative - Fylde)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, pursuant to the Answer of 4 June 2025 to Question 55112 on Music Venues: Finance, what steps her Department is taking to ensure equitable access to the Supporting Grassroots Music Fund in (a) Fylde constituency, (b) regions with fewer existing grassroots music venues and (c) all English regions.
Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The Supporting Grassroots Music Fund is open to applications from rehearsal and recording studios, promoters, festivals, and venues for live and electronic music performance, from across the whole of England. Arts Council England supports and encourages applicants from across England including through its network of area-based relationship managers.
The Government and the live music industry are working together to drive progress on an industry-led levy on tickets for stadium and arena shows, to support grassroots music. We welcome commitments by artists and the wider industry to implement the ticket levy, and steps taken by industry to set up a charitable trust to distribute funds from the levy.
As part of the Spending Review 2025, the Government has announced a significant increase in funding for the Creative Industries. The Government’s industrial strategy is prioritising the creative industries and we will set out actions to drive music sector growth in the upcoming Creative Industries Sector Plan.
Asked by: Andrew Snowden (Conservative - Fylde)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, pursuant to the Answer of 4 June 2025 to Question 55112 on Music Venues: Finance, whether she plans to increase levels of Supporting Grassroots Music Fund funding beyond 2025-26; and whether she has considered creating a multi-year funding stream for grassroots venues.
Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The Supporting Grassroots Music Fund is open to applications from rehearsal and recording studios, promoters, festivals, and venues for live and electronic music performance, from across the whole of England. Arts Council England supports and encourages applicants from across England including through its network of area-based relationship managers.
The Government and the live music industry are working together to drive progress on an industry-led levy on tickets for stadium and arena shows, to support grassroots music. We welcome commitments by artists and the wider industry to implement the ticket levy, and steps taken by industry to set up a charitable trust to distribute funds from the levy.
As part of the Spending Review 2025, the Government has announced a significant increase in funding for the Creative Industries. The Government’s industrial strategy is prioritising the creative industries and we will set out actions to drive music sector growth in the upcoming Creative Industries Sector Plan.