Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:

To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, if he will provide a list of (a) professional staff networks and (b) social clubs operating within his Department; and if he will provide the (i) budgets and (ii) FTE staff time allocated to each group within each of the last three years.

(a) Across the Civil Service, employee networks provide a valuable support structure for staff. They promote activities that open up opportunities in the Civil Service for talented civil servants and prospective civil servants, and encourage team working and an inclusive work culture. The department has a number of voluntary staff networks in place which are focussed on inclusion, equalities, and welfare. These networks plays an important role in reviewing and improving the working conditions, policies, and processes that affect our diverse workforce, and membership is entirely voluntary. There are currently 14 staff networks officially recognised by the department, however we do not consider these networks to be ‘professional’ by distinction as they are not linked to professional or functional areas. The Department does not hold a central record of any other professional networks established by its staff, professional, or functional areas

(b) Social clubs established by and for officials working in the Department are in the private and personal interest of its members, and as such a central record of this information is not readily available. The only exception is the sports and recreation association (SPARTA), which is jointly ran by DLUHC and DFT. SPARTA is a non-profit organisation whose aim is to promote and encourage social and recreational activities these departments

(c) Social clubs, which are entirely in the personal and private interests of its members, would not be allocated any FTE staff time or budgets. SPARTA members are asked to make a small contribution each month to support with the delivery or the organisation’s programmes and activities.