Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, with reference to the news story, Chancellor sets out extra £750 million coronavirus funding for frontline charities, published on 8 April 2020, how much of the £20 million allocated as match funding to the Big Night In initiative has been (a) allocated and (b) received by organisations to date; and what criteria was used to allocate that funding.
Answered by John Whittingdale
The Government has made available an unprecedented £750 million package of support, specifically for charities, social enterprises and the voluntary sector. This will ensure charities and other civil society organisations, including those at risk of financial hardship, can continue their vital work during the Covid-19 outbreak.
Of the £750m, £200 million of this money is being distributed by the National Lottery Community Fund (NLCF) through the Coronavirus Community Support Fund (CCSF). As of 13th September 2020, £116,162,678 million has been awarded to organisations through this Fund, which is being disbursed to them in accordance with the payment profiles set out in the onward grant agreements. Of this amount, £58,332,938 has been allocated to medium sized organisations and £25,795,260 to small organisations.
The eligibility criteria used by NLCF to assess CCSF funding applications can be found on the NLCF’s website: https://www.tnlcommunityfund.org.uk/funding/programmes/covid-19-funding-over-10k#section-2. A list of all organisations that have been awarded funding from the CCSF will be published once the allocation process is complete.
£85 million has been allocated to the ‘Community Match Challenge’ which is matching funds raised by philanthropists, foundations and grant making organisations to further support small to medium sized organisations from across the country working with those who are most vulnerable and have been hardest hit by the coronavirus outbreak. This Fund closed for bids on 2nd August and the outcome will be announced shortly.
A further £4.8 million will be distributed to the Voluntary and Community Sector Emergencies Partnership - a group that comes together to improve national and local coordination before, during and after emergencies - to help strengthen the voluntary sector’s response to coronavirus and future emergencies.
To support the BBC’s 'Big Night In' (BNI), the Government matched the generous donations of the public across the country with a grant for £20 million to the National Emergencies Trust (NET) which is working in Partnership with the UK Community Foundations and a further £17 million which was shared between Comic Relief (CR) and Children in Need (CiN). As of 11 September, £16,641,702.24 has been allocated by all three funds with awards disbursed to charities through the usual process. The eligibility criteria used to assess applications for BNI funding can be found here for the NET element of the funding: https://www.ukcommunityfoundations.org/our-programmes and here for CR and CiN funding: https://www.comicrelief.com/funding
£360 million has been allocated by central government departments with £200 million of this directly supporting hospices across the country. The remaining funding has been allocated and awarded, as follows, with distribution to charities undertaken by the relevant department in accordance with the relevant grant agreements:
Fund/Department/Allocation | Awarded (as at 11 September 2020) |
£5m Loneliness Fund, DCMS | £4.92m |
£14m Zoos Support Fund, DEFRA (with top-up of £86m from HMT in July) | £2.19m |
£6m Homelessness Fund, MHCLG | £5.92m |
£34.15m Vulnerable Children Fund, DfE and Home Office | £11.8m through HO £21.8m through DfE |
£27m Domestic Abuse Survivors and Survivors of Sexual Violence, MoJ and Home Office | £22.1m through MoJ £1.7m through HO |
£1.8m Survivors of Modern Slavery, Home Office | £1.7m |
£5.4m Legal Advice, MoJ | £5.2m |
£16m Meals for Those in Need, DEFRA | £15.7m |
£15m Support for the Citizens Advice service, BEIS | £15m |
£22m Support for Health Charities, DHSC | £23.7m (includes additional DHSC match funding over minimum requirements) |
£6m Support for Armed Services, MoD | £6m |
£10m Domestic Abuse safe accommodation fund, MHCLG | £8.8m |
Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, with reference to the news story, Chancellor sets out extra £750 million coronavirus funding for frontline charities, published on 8 April 2020, how much of the £360 million allocated to Government departments for further distribution has been allocated to each department to date; and how much has been spent by each Government department.
Answered by John Whittingdale
The Government has made available an unprecedented £750 million package of support, specifically for charities, social enterprises and the voluntary sector. This will ensure charities and other civil society organisations, including those at risk of financial hardship, can continue their vital work during the Covid-19 outbreak.
Of the £750m, £200 million of this money is being distributed by the National Lottery Community Fund (NLCF) through the Coronavirus Community Support Fund (CCSF). As of 13th September 2020, £116,162,678 million has been awarded to organisations through this Fund, which is being disbursed to them in accordance with the payment profiles set out in the onward grant agreements. Of this amount, £58,332,938 has been allocated to medium sized organisations and £25,795,260 to small organisations.
The eligibility criteria used by NLCF to assess CCSF funding applications can be found on the NLCF’s website: https://www.tnlcommunityfund.org.uk/funding/programmes/covid-19-funding-over-10k#section-2. A list of all organisations that have been awarded funding from the CCSF will be published once the allocation process is complete.
£85 million has been allocated to the ‘Community Match Challenge’ which is matching funds raised by philanthropists, foundations and grant making organisations to further support small to medium sized organisations from across the country working with those who are most vulnerable and have been hardest hit by the coronavirus outbreak. This Fund closed for bids on 2nd August and the outcome will be announced shortly.
A further £4.8 million will be distributed to the Voluntary and Community Sector Emergencies Partnership - a group that comes together to improve national and local coordination before, during and after emergencies - to help strengthen the voluntary sector’s response to coronavirus and future emergencies.
To support the BBC’s 'Big Night In' (BNI), the Government matched the generous donations of the public across the country with a grant for £20 million to the National Emergencies Trust (NET) which is working in Partnership with the UK Community Foundations and a further £17 million which was shared between Comic Relief (CR) and Children in Need (CiN). As of 11 September, £16,641,702.24 has been allocated by all three funds with awards disbursed to charities through the usual process. The eligibility criteria used to assess applications for BNI funding can be found here for the NET element of the funding: https://www.ukcommunityfoundations.org/our-programmes and here for CR and CiN funding: https://www.comicrelief.com/funding
£360 million has been allocated by central government departments with £200 million of this directly supporting hospices across the country. The remaining funding has been allocated and awarded, as follows, with distribution to charities undertaken by the relevant department in accordance with the relevant grant agreements:
Fund/Department/Allocation | Awarded (as at 11 September 2020) |
£5m Loneliness Fund, DCMS | £4.92m |
£14m Zoos Support Fund, DEFRA (with top-up of £86m from HMT in July) | £2.19m |
£6m Homelessness Fund, MHCLG | £5.92m |
£34.15m Vulnerable Children Fund, DfE and Home Office | £11.8m through HO £21.8m through DfE |
£27m Domestic Abuse Survivors and Survivors of Sexual Violence, MoJ and Home Office | £22.1m through MoJ £1.7m through HO |
£1.8m Survivors of Modern Slavery, Home Office | £1.7m |
£5.4m Legal Advice, MoJ | £5.2m |
£16m Meals for Those in Need, DEFRA | £15.7m |
£15m Support for the Citizens Advice service, BEIS | £15m |
£22m Support for Health Charities, DHSC | £23.7m (includes additional DHSC match funding over minimum requirements) |
£6m Support for Armed Services, MoD | £6m |
£10m Domestic Abuse safe accommodation fund, MHCLG | £8.8m |
Asked by: Kate Osborne (Labour - Jarrow)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, how much funding has been allocated to the live comedy industry as part of his Department's coronavirus arts funding support package.
Answered by Caroline Dinenage
The Secretary of State provided a major £1.57 billion support package for key cultural organisations to help them through the coronavirus pandemic. Live comedy is a much loved part of the British cultural landscape. Comedy venues and organisations are eligible for support through the package.
The Culture Recovery Fund will provide targeted support to organisations in the cultural and heritage sectors. The Fund is being delivered by Arts Council England, the British Film Institute, Historic England and the National Lottery Heritage Fund, who are currently considering applications. Announcements about allocations will be made in the coming weeks.
The Live Comedy Association has attended regular ministerially-chaired roundtables that seek to ensure Creative Industries sectors are being assisted as effectively as possible.
We will continue to work with the comedy sector to understand the difficulties the industry faces and help it access support available to address challenges.
Asked by: Jonathan Gullis (Conservative - Stoke-on-Trent North)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sports, what fiscal steps he is taking to support cultural and creative industries affected by the covid-19 outbreak in (a) Stoke-on-Trent and (b) Staffordshire.
Answered by Caroline Dinenage
The Culture Recovery Fund will provide £1.57 billion of targeted support to critical cultural, arts and heritage organisations to help them survive and recover through the coronavirus pandemic. Funding will be prioritised to institutions of national and international significance and those that are crucial to levelling up places and communities, including smaller organisations and cultural venues that are at the centre of their communities.
Key organisations in England have been able to apply for grants or loans. The relevant DCMS Arms Length Bodies (Arts Council England, Historic England, National Lottery Heritage Fund and the British Film Institute) will make funding decisions for grants against the published criteria agreed by Ministers. In addition, the independent Culture Recovery Board will make decisions regarding applications for loans, and provide additional assurance over the largest grants.
Our priority is to ensure that organisations get the funding they need as swiftly as possible and we expect some funding decisions to be made this month with announcements soon after that.
The Underground live music venue in Stoke on Trent has already benefited from the £3.36 million Emergency Grassroot Music Venues Fund which has been shared among 135 venues across England who applied for support to survive the imminent risk of collapse caused by the coronavirus pandemic.
Asked by: Alec Shelbrooke (Conservative - Elmet and Rothwell)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, if he will ensure that the distribution of the covid-19 arts rescue package includes funding for (a) the Royal Northern Sinfonia and (b) other institutions in the North of England.
Answered by Caroline Dinenage
The Culture Recovery Fund will provide targeted support to critical cultural, arts and heritage organisations to help them survive and recover through the coronavirus pandemic. Funding will be prioritised to institutions of national and international significance and those that are crucial to levelling up places and communities, including smaller organisations and cultural venues that are at the centre of their communities.
Key organisations in England are able to apply for grants or loans. The relevant DCMS Arms Length Bodies (Arts Council England, Historic England, National Lottery Heritage Fund and the British Film Institute) will make funding decisions for grants against the published criteria agreed by Ministers. In addition, the independent Culture Recovery Board will make decisions regarding applications for loans, and provide additional assurance over the largest grants.
Asked by: Margaret Hodge (Labour - Barking)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, when he plans to announce how theatres can apply for the Government support package for the arts in response to the covid-19 outbreak.
Answered by Caroline Dinenage
On 5 July, the Government announced a major £1.57 billion support package for key cultural organisations to help them through the coronavirus pandemic. Guidance has been published by Arts Council England, the British Film Institute, Historic England and the National Lottery Heritage Fund for applicants to the Culture Recovery Grants application rounds, and by Arts Council England for applicants to the Repayable Finance Scheme. Further details on eligibility and application processes are available in the published guidance.
This funding will provide targeted support to organisations across a range of sectors, with one of our core objectives being to support the cultural organisations that are crucial to places across the whole country. We will ensure that funding is distributed fairly, and that smaller organisations and cultural venues that are at the centre of their communities are protected.
We also recognise the crucial role that individuals play in making our arts and creative industries world-leading. As a result of these grants and loans, organisations will be more able to resume cultural activity, albeit in a socially distanced way, which will increase employment opportunities for freelancers.
Asked by: Laura Farris (Conservative - Newbury)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, with reference to the press release entitled, £1.57 billion investment to protect Britain’s world-class cultural, arts and heritage institutions, what the process is for freelancer (a) performers, (b) musicians and (c) third party providers to access that funding; and what the timeframe is for freelancers to apply for that funding.
Answered by Caroline Dinenage
On 5 July, the Government announced a major £1.57 billion support package for key cultural organisations to help them through the coronavirus pandemic. Guidance has been published by Arts Council England, the British Film Institute, Historic England and the National Lottery Heritage Fund for applicants to the Culture Recovery Grants application rounds, and by Arts Council England for applicants to the Repayable Finance Scheme. Further details on eligibility and application processes are available in the published guidance.
This funding will provide targeted support to organisations across a range of sectors, with one of our core objectives being to support the cultural organisations that are crucial to places across the whole country. We will ensure that funding is distributed fairly, and that smaller organisations and cultural venues that are at the centre of their communities are protected.
We also recognise the crucial role that individuals play in making our arts and creative industries world-leading. As a result of these grants and loans, organisations will be more able to resume cultural activity, albeit in a socially distanced way, which will increase employment opportunities for freelancers.
Asked by: Ian Byrne (Labour - Liverpool, West Derby)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, for what reason (a) institutions and (b) individuals in the arts sector will be required to demonstrate how they have contributed to wider economic growth in order to access the Government's support package for the arts; and what steps he is taking to ensure that the criteria for eligibility will not exclude smaller provincial venues and artists from being eligible for those funds.
Answered by Caroline Dinenage
On 5 July, the Government announced a major £1.57 billion support package for key cultural organisations to help them through the coronavirus pandemic. In order to receive support, organisations will need to demonstrate that they are at risk in this financial year and have done all they can to exhaust other options. Guidance published by Arts Council England, the British Film Institute, Historic England and the National Lottery Heritage Fund sets out further details on eligibility requirements for the package.
While we would like this investment to go as far as it can in spreading support across the country, funding will not be available for every organisation. As such, the delivery bodies will be prioritising institutions of national and international significance and those that are crucial to levelling up places and communities and economic growth across the country. As part of that, we are ensuring that funding is distributed fairly, and that smaller organisations and cultural venues that are at the centre of their communities are protected.
Asked by: Christine Jardine (Liberal Democrat - Edinburgh West)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what steps he is taking to ensure that the arts support package is fairly distributed to (a) smaller organisations, (b) arts practitioners and (c) art support workers, including the (i) smaller-scale theatre and live performance sector, (ii) smaller year-round independent venues, (iii) community-based organisations and (vi) freelancers.
Answered by Caroline Dinenage
On 5 July, the Government announced a major £1.57 billion support package for key cultural organisations to help them through the coronavirus pandemic. Guidance has been published by Arts Council England, the British Film Institute, Historic England and the National Lottery Heritage Fund for applicants to the Culture Recovery Grants application rounds, and by Arts Council England for applicants to the Repayable Finance Scheme. Further details on eligibility and application processes are available in the published guidance.
This funding will provide targeted support to organisations across a range of sectors, with one of our core objectives being to support the cultural organisations that are crucial to places across the whole country. We will ensure that funding is distributed fairly, and that smaller organisations and cultural venues that are at the centre of their communities are protected.
We also recognise the crucial role that individuals play in making our arts and creative industries world-leading. As a result of these grants and loans, organisations will be more able to resume cultural activity, albeit in a socially distanced way, which will increase employment opportunities for freelancers.
Asked by: Ed Davey (Liberal Democrat - Kingston and Surbiton)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what estimate he has made of the loss of income to freelance photographers as a result of the covid-19 outbreak.
Answered by Caroline Dinenage
On 5 July, the Government announced a major £1.57 billion support package for key cultural organisations to help them through the coronavirus pandemic. Guidance has been published by Arts Council England, the British Film Institute, Historic England and the National Lottery Heritage Fund for applicants to the Culture Recovery Grants application rounds, and by Arts Council England for applicants to the Repayable Finance Scheme. Further details on eligibility and application processes are available in the published guidance.
This funding will provide targeted support to organisations across a range of sectors, with one of our core objectives being to support the cultural organisations that are crucial to places across the whole country. We will ensure that funding is distributed fairly, and that smaller organisations and cultural venues that are at the centre of their communities are protected.
We also recognise the crucial role that individuals play in making our arts and creative industries world-leading. As a result of these grants and loans, organisations will be more able to resume cultural activity, albeit in a socially distanced way, which will increase employment opportunities for freelancers.