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 the provision of youth services 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)
As set out in section 507B of the Education Act 1996, local authorities have a statutory duty to secure, so far as is reasonably practicable, sufficient provision of educational and recreational leisure-time activities for young people. At the Autumn Budget, we announced £1.3 billion of extra funding through the Local Government Finance Settlement for the next financial year.
This Government is committed to giving all young people the chance to reach their full potential and recognises the vital role that youth services and activities play in improving their life chances and wellbeing. That is why, on 12 November 2024, the Secretary of State announced the launch of a new National Youth Strategy coproduced with young people, which will prioritise delivering better coordinated youth services and policy at a local, regional and national level.
Alongside this, the Government will be allocating over £85 million of capital funding to create fit-for-purpose spaces for young people. This includes launching the new £26 million Better Youth Spaces fund (equipment and small refurbishments for youth clubs, led by young people) and the completion of Youth Investment Fund projects such as youth clubs in communities that need them. We will also be launching the Local Youth Transformation pilot, which will provide tools, guidance, peer challenge and funding to build back local authorities’ lost capability in the youth space.
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 make an assessment of the potential merits of providing funding for the Spalding Flower Parade.
Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
I think of floristry as one of the great unsung British creative industries, with florists providing imaginative joy for vital family and civic occasions and for private happiness in every constituency in the land. The reinstatement of the Spalding Flower Parade in 2023 ensures that there is once again a great opportunity to celebrate Lincolnshire’s flower industry .
As part of DCMS’ restructuring of destination management in England, VisitEngland have recently accredited Destination Lincolnshire as the Local Visitor Economy Partnership with the skills and experience to grow visitor numbers and spend in the region. Destination Lincolnshire would be best placed to make an assessment of the value of the parade to future tourism in the region.
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 funding for arts and culture in (a) South Holland and the Deepings constituency and (b) Lincolnshire.
Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
After 14 years of indifference and cultural vandalism, this government is committed to making sure that arts and cultural activities will no longer be the preserve of a privileged few. We are working with Arts Council England and others to understand what the challenges and opportunities are for our sectors. As part of the Government’s “Creating Growth” plan, DCMS is also undertaking a review documenting current and past funding for the arts, culture, and heritage sectors.
Arts Council England’s open funding programme, National Lottery Project Grants, is accessible to organisations and individuals across the country, including those in the South Holland and the Deepings constituency, and across Lincolnshire. This programme provides over £100 million of support annually, and is open to new and emerging artists.
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, whether her Department has provided funding to the Runnymede Trust in the last ten years.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The Department for Culture, Media and Sport has checked all available records which show no funding has been provided to the Runnymede Trust in the last ten years.
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 assessment her Department has made of the adequacy of levels of funding for grassroots rugby infrastructure.
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, should have access to and benefit from quality sport and physical activity opportunities.
The Government provides the majority of support for grassroots sport through our Arm’s Length Body, Sport England - which annually invests over £250 million in Exchequer and Lottery funding.
This includes long term investment to The Rugby Football Union, the National Governing Body for rugby in England, which receives up to £13.8 million for five years to invest in community rugby initiatives that will benefit everyone.
Furthermore, as part of the Women’s Rugby World Cup 2025 Impact Facility Fund between 2023 and 2027 the RFU will receive £7 million investment to enhance the grassroots rugby experience for women.
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, whether Ministers in her Department have met representatives of Arden Strategies since 5 July 2024.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
Neither the Secretary of State nor other DCMS ministers have held meetings with representatives of Arden Strategies in their ministerial capacity to date. Ministers attend non-governmental events which Arden Strategies representatives may also attend.
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 make it her policy to decriminalise non-payment of the television licence fee.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The Culture Secretary believes it is important that the television licence fee has a fair enforcement regime that does not disproportionately impact vulnerable people.
As part of the next Charter Review, the government will engage with the BBC and others to consider how to ensure the BBC thrives well into the next decade and beyond. This will include discussions on a range of important issues, including future funding models for the BBC, and their enforcement.
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 promote access to sports for (a) young people and (b) people with disabilities in South Holland and the Deepings constituency.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The Government is committed to doing more to ensure that everyone, including children and young people and those with disabilities, has access to and benefits from quality sport and physical activity opportunities. Sport and physical activity is central to achieving our health and opportunity manifesto missions, with the biggest gains coming from supporting those who are inactive to move more.
The Government-funded Inclusion 2024 programme is available to all schools in the country, including South Holland and the Deepings. It provides both expert support and free resources, and can help schools enhance opportunities for young people with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) to engage in P.E. and school sports.
We provide the majority of our funding for grassroots sport through our Arm’s Length Body, Sport England - which invests over £250 million in Exchequer and Lottery funding each year. Since 2020, South Holland and the Deepings has received over £300,000 of Sport England funding to provide opportunities for the local community to get active. This includes funding for the delivery of the School Games programme within the constituency, which provides school children with the opportunity to engage in local and inclusive sporting competitions across 40 different sports and activities, including adapted and accessible formats for children with SEND.
The Culture Secretary recently attended the launch of ParalympicGB’s Equal Play Campaign where she expressed her determination to put sport at the heart of the school curriculum. This includes opening up opportunities for all young people, including those with disabilities, to be able to access sport and physical activity at school.
Sport England also works to ensure that each of their programmes impact directly on disabled people and those with a long-term health condition, with initiatives like the 'We are Undefeatable' campaign and partnerships with disability organisations.
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, whether her Department plans to expand the Multi-Sport Grassroots Facilities Programme to include facilities in South Holland and the Deepings constituency.
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 quality sport and physical activity opportunities. We are acting to support more people in getting onto the pitch wherever they live via the Multi-Sport Grassroots Facilities Programme, which will invest £123 million UK-wide throughout 2024/25.
Funding from the Multi-Sport Grassroots Facilities Programme continues to be invested in England through Sport England and our delivery partner, the Football Foundation. South Holland and the Deepings constituency has benefitted from £600,149 of investment under the Multi-Sport Grassroots Facilities programme to date.
The Football Foundation plans their investment pipeline based on Local Football Facility Plans (LFFPs). These plans have been developed in partnership with local authorities and are in the process of being refreshed to reflect the current landscape. The existing LFFP for South Holland can be found by visiting the Football Foundation’s website.
Should a constituent have an enquiry about prospective investment at a specific facility, they can get in touch with the Football Foundation directly via enquiries@footballfoundation.org.uk.
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 the (a) value of grants made and (b) number of recipients of funding from the National Citizen Service was in (i) South Holland and the Deepings constituency and (ii) Lincolnshire since 2010.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
Following Covid-19 and a strategic review, in 2023 the NCS Trust launched a new delivery model for the NCS programme. The new programme consists of residential, community and digital experiences. NCS Trust provides grant-funding to local organisations across England to deliver these community experiences. The figures provided here include all funding and young people in their respective areas, including that provided prior to the new grant-funding model.
In South Holland and the Deepings, since 2010, at least 1340 young people have taken part in an NCS experience and approximately £313,000 has been distributed to provide the experiences to these young people. This funding was delivered to at least 6 organisations.
In Lincolnshire county, since 2010 at least 8850 young people have taken part in an NCS experience and £2.7m of funding has been distributed across 12 organisations. Since 2023, 723 young person experiences have taken place directly funded by grants and NCS has provided over £230k grant-funding to organisations that deliver community experiences to young people in Lincolnshire. This grant funding was delivered to two local organisations.