Asked by: John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)
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 help improve access to sport for (a) children and (b) young people from disadvantaged backgrounds in South Holland and the Deepings constituency.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
Every child should have the opportunity to play sport and do regular physical activity including those from disadvantaged backgrounds.
The Prime Minister recently announced a new School Sport Partnerships approach and a new Enrichment Framework for schools to ensure all young people have equal access to high-quality sport and extracurricular activity. The ongoing independent expert-led review of the curriculum will ensure that all children can engage with a broad range of subjects, including PE and sport.
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, including for children and young people, and then set out further plans.
In the last financial year, 2024-25, Sport England, our Arm’s Length Body for community sport, invested £43,803 into South Holland and the Deepings constituency to improve access to sport and physical activity.
Asked by: John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, if she will take steps to promote timebanking to support social inclusion.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
Although government does not currently promote a specific form of social action such as timebanking, we are strongly committed to supporting social action in all its forms and recognise its role in supporting social inclusion in local communities. Timebanking can be a fantastic way to encourage more people to get involved and make a difference in their local area and help to foster social connections. It is hugely positive to see just how many organisations offer some form of timebanking or time credits to incentivise people to give their time freely for social good.
Asked by: John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, how much funding her Department plans to provide for (a) sports and (b) health clubs facilities in (i) South Holland District and (ii) South Kesteven District in the next 12 months.
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 background, has access to and benefits from high-quality sport facilities, which offer the chance to be physically active.
The Government provides the majority of funding for grassroots sports and health club facilities 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.
The constituency of South Holland and the Deepings received a total of £14,473 of funding through the Multi-Sport Grassroots Facilities Programme in the last 2 funding years. More information about this funding can be found on GOV.UK: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/multi-sport-grassroots-facilities-programme-projects-2021-to-2025
Asked by: John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, how much funding her Department has allocated to grassroots sports clubs in South Holland and the Deepings constituency in the last 2 years.
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 background, has access to and benefits from high-quality sport facilities, which offer the chance to be physically active.
The Government provides the majority of funding for grassroots sports and health club facilities 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.
The constituency of South Holland and the Deepings received a total of £14,473 of funding through the Multi-Sport Grassroots Facilities Programme in the last 2 funding years. More information about this funding can be found on GOV.UK: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/multi-sport-grassroots-facilities-programme-projects-2021-to-2025
Asked by: John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)
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 increase the number of apprenticeship starts in her Department.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
We remain committed to supporting the use of apprenticeships across all government departments to break down barriers to opportunity. This includes supporting the Government's commitment to 2,000 digital apprenticeships through its TechTrack scheme by 2030 to improve digital skills and drive improvements and efficiency in public services.
Additionally, a new cross-Government Level 3 apprenticeship programme in Business Administration, The ‘Civil Service Career Launch Apprenticeship’ (CLA), will see new apprentices kickstart their careers, across various departments, starting from January 2026.
The Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) is increasing apprenticeship starts through targeted external recruitment and we are commencing a pilot ‘social mobility program’ utilising the Cabinet Office ‘Going Forward In Employment’ apprenticeships. DCMS will also be involved with the ‘Civil Service Career Launch apprenticeship’, exploring Levy transfer options and broadening its internal apprenticeship offer in professions such as Digital.
Asked by: John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what discussions she has had with the Charity Commission on whether it plans to amend its policy on the use of women-only spaces in its buildings by transgender women following the Supreme Court judgement in the case of For Women Scotland v The Scottish Ministers of 16 April 2025.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The Supreme Court ruling made it clear that the provision of single-sex spaces is on the basis of biological sex. Providers should note and follow the ruling.
It is important that we ensure dignity and respect for all. Trans people should have access to services they need but in keeping with the ruling.
The Equality & Human Rights Commission, as Britain’s Equalities watchdog, is developing updated guidance to support service providers. The Charity Commission for England and Wales will consider the EHRC’s updated draft once they have submitted it following further work in light of this ruling.
Ministers and officials regularly meet with the Charity Commission. In relation to this specific judgement, the Commission is considering the implications, including what this means for its buildings.
Asked by: John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, with reference to the Supreme Court ruling published on April 16, what plans her Department has to amend its policy on the use of women-only spaces in its buildings by transgender women.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The Supreme Court ruling made it clear that the provision of single-sex spaces is on the basis of biological sex. Providers should note and follow the ruling.
It is important that we ensure dignity and respect for all. Trans people should have access to services they need but in keeping with the ruling.
The Equality & Human Rights Commission, as Britain’s Equalities watchdog, is developing updated guidance to support service providers. Ministers will consider the EHRC’s updated draft once they have submitted it following further work in light of this ruling.
The Government is considering the implications of the Court’s judgment, including what this means for Government buildings.
Asked by: John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)
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 taking to support emerging artists in Lincolnshire.
Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The Secretary of State announced a new £270 million Arts Everywhere Fund on 20 February. This will include support to museums, arts and music venues across the country and is a critical step that this Government is taking to help create jobs, boost local economies, and expand access to arts and culture for communities.
This is in addition to steps already being taken to support arts and culture via Arts Council England (ACE) through various programmes, including its National Portfolio Organisation investment programme (NPO). In Lincolnshire, ACE has provided over £27 million of funding between 2021-2025 to local organisations such as the SO Festival (an NPO), a Combined Arts organisation receiving over £320,000 per annum, that brings international artists and performers to Mablethorpe and Skegness each year, increasing engagement and interest in the arts within local communities.
Zest Theatre (also a NPO) is a national touring theatre company that creates work with and for young people which receives £180,000 per annum. They are particularly well known for their outdoor immersive work, including ‘The Zone’ – a pop up creative space for young people aged 11-18 in Lincoln each summer – and installations that amplify the voices of young people in the region.
Within the South Holland and The Deepings constituency, ACE supports organisations such as Transported (£275,00 per annum), through its Creative People and Places programme, which is a strategic, community-focused programme which aims to get more people in Boston and South Holland enjoying and participating in arts activities.
Through the National Lottery Project Grants ACE has made nine awards, since 2021, across museums, visual arts and theatre, totalling more than £241,000. Also through its Developing Your Creative Practice programme, ACE has supported three individual artists with a total of £33,324 across visual arts and music since 2021.
Asked by: John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)
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 taking to support creative industries in (a) South Holland and the Deepings constituency and (b) Lincolnshire.
Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The creative industries sector is one of eight growth-driving sectors identified in the government’s Industrial Strategy. We will publish a Creative Industries Sector Plan to drive growth across the whole of the UK in the late spring.
Businesses across Lincolnshire, including South Holland and The Deepings, are able to benefit from support from DCMS and its arms-length bodies.
At the Creative Industries Growth Summit in January, the Secretary of State for DCMS announced a series of measures aimed at driving growth in the country’s creative businesses.
This included the continuation of the Create Growth Programme, which will receive £16.3 million towards its continuation during the 2025/26 financial year to support high-growth creative businesses to scale up and become investment ready. The East Midlands Create Growth Programme region covers the Lincolnshire area and includes the University of Lincoln as a key partner.
Also included was a commitment from the British Business Bank to increase the scale of its support for the Creative Industries, strengthening investment in creative R&D from UKRI, and bringing forward changes so that shorter apprenticeships are available from August 2025, recognising the particular needs of the creative industries.
Asked by: John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)
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 taking to improve access to sports facilities for disabled people in (a) South Holland and the Deepings constituency and (b) Lincolnshire.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The Government is dedicated to making sport in this country accessible and inclusive for everyone. The Government has announced a further £100 million in funding to deliver new and improved multi-sport grassroots facilities and pitches across the whole of the UK. The Multi-Sport Grassroots Facilities Programme’s aims include regular, weekly use by under-represented groups, including disabled people, so that everyone has the opportunity to participate. In 2024/25 the programme invested £3,389 in South Holland and the Deepings, and £12,931 in Lincolnshire.
Sport England, the Government’s Arm’s Length Body for grassroots sport, is committed to increasing participation in sport and physical activity for disabled people and improving their access to sport facilities. Sport England runs specific initiatives like the 'We are Undefeatable' campaign, impacting directly on disabled people, and those with a long-term health condition. Sport England also has partnerships with organisations such as Disability Rights UK, Activity Alliance, Aspire, and Sense, to help more disabled people get active.