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 funding disbursed by Arts Council England is fairly distributed across the country.

The Secretary of State believes that while talent is everywhere, opportunity is not. As part of our Plan for Change, we are committed to ensuring that arts and culture thrives in every part of the country, with more opportunities for people to engage, benefit from and work in arts and culture where they live. It is why, at DCMS, we have adopted a place-based approach, putting local people, communities and places first in everything that we do. And it's why, over the course of this Parliament, the Government will invest £1.5 billion in capital funding for arts and culture - the largest investment of its kind for a generation. We believe that excellent culture belongs to everyone, everywhere, and not just in a handful of cities or institutions, but in every town, city and village in this country.

ACE itself uses several mechanisms to ensure funding is distributed fairly across the country. Their funding strategy is a targeted, data-driven, and locally delivered model that prioritises underinvested areas, with an embedded, long-term approach to regional equity. This strategy includes:

• Geographic investment targets: ACE sets place-based priorities to direct more funding into historically underfunded areas.

• Regular portfolio balancing: Its National Portfolio Organisations (NPO) funding round is periodically reassessed to rebalance investment across regions.

• Data-led decision-making: Funding allocations are guided by regional data on deprivation, cultural access, and existing provision.

• Dedicated regional teams: Local officers assess applications with knowledge of regional needs and context.

• Strategic funds and programmes: Targeted schemes support touring, grassroots organisations, and underserved communities.

• Transparency and reporting: ACE publishes funding data and geographic breakdowns to monitor equity and accountability.

• Access and inclusion criteria: Applications are assessed partly on how they broaden access for diverse and geographically dispersed audiences.

Together, these measures aim to reduce regional disparities and ensure public funding benefits communities across all parts of England.