Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Stephanie Peacock and Elsie Blundell

Thursday 27th November 2025 Commons Chamber

[Mrs Elsie Blundell (Heywood and Middleton North) (Lab)]

6. What steps she is taking to help increase the number of women and girls taking up sports in Greater Manchester.

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport (Stephanie Peacock)]

This Government believe in the power of grassroots sport, which is why we announced investment of more than £400 million in the future of grassroots facilities. Our ambition is for girls to have equal access to any facility that we fund, doubling access to priority slots for women and girls over this Parliament.

[Mrs Blundell]

I am delighted to see sport for women and girls growing in prominence and recognition across the country. To ensure that we meet the ambition of women and girls in these spaces, we need the facilities and infrastructure to support them, hone their talent, and pave the way for the next generation. What steps are being taken by this Government to provide women and girls with access to high-quality sports facilities, including in my area of Greater Manchester?

[Stephanie Peacock]

We support all aspects of sport for women and girls, and we are working alongside the sport sector and local leaders to develop a place-based approach to funding. We launched our women’s sport taskforce to drive a decade of change in women’s sport. We will ensure that we deliver facilities that each area needs, so that women and girls can participate in sport in Greater Manchester and across the UK.