Asked by: Steve Reed (Labour (Co-op) - Croydon North)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, with reference to page 37 of the Government's August 2018 Civil Society Strategy, what progress has been made on his Department's target of training a further 3,500 people in community organising through a national network of Social Action Hubs and partnerships with public and social sector organisations by 2020.
Answered by Mims Davies - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
Government is fully committed to the Civil Society Strategy: it is the beginning of an ambitious, evolving work programme to help build a strong society. Following the success of the Community Organisers Programme (2011-2015), we launched the Community Organisers Expansion Programme in early 2017 to train 3,500 more individuals, across England, by March 2020.
By March 2019, 2,000 people have been trained in community organising through a variety of routes; via 20 Social Action Hubs (grass roots organisations developing local practice of community organising and social action), public sector training courses, and partnerships with organisations including Local Trust, NALC, Neighbourhood Watch, and the National Citizen Service.
Asked by: Steve Reed (Labour (Co-op) - Croydon North)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, with reference to page 16 of the Government's August 2018 Civil Society Strategy, what steps his Department has taken to work with Big Lottery Fund to use £55 million from dormant accounts to fund a new, independent organisation which will work with partners across the private and social sectors to tackle financial exclusion.
Answered by Mims Davies - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
Last year, the Government committed £55 million from dormant assets to tackle financial exclusion and problem debt. In the Civil Society Strategy, the government announced that this funding would be directed to a new, independent organisation, with a remit to address this social issue. This organisation was launched on 28th February 2019, with Richard Collier-Keywood appointed as its Founding Chair. The organisation has taken the name Fair4All Finance Limited.
Asked by: Steve Reed (Labour (Co-op) - Croydon North)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, with reference to page 113 of the Government's August 2018 Civil Society Strategy, what steps his Department has taken to explore the potential to use flexibilities in the law governing contracts (such as the Mutuals Reservation) to reserve some competitions to other social purpose vehicles.
Answered by Mims Davies - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Civil Society Strategy is the beginning of an ambitious, evolving work programme to help build a stronger society. The Strategy sets out a vision for government’s work with and for civil society over the next 10 years and beyond.
We remain committed to exploring how potential flexibilities in the law governing contracts has the potential as an important tool in creating a more diverse supply of public services.
Asked by: Steve Reed (Labour (Co-op) - Croydon North)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, how many officials from (a) his Department and (b) the Office for Civil Society have been moved from their normal duties to work on preparations for the UK leaving the EU without a deal.
Answered by Jeremy Wright
I refer the Hon member to the answer given to PQ 218152 from 20th February.
Asked by: Steve Reed (Labour (Co-op) - Croydon North)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, with reference to page 74 of the Government's August 2018 Civil Society Strategy, what steps his Department has taken to work with the Charity Commission and UK Community Foundations to release at least £20 million over the next two years from inactive charitable trusts to grassroots community organisations.
Answered by Mims Davies - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
Working in conjunction, DCMS, the Charity Commission, and UK Community Foundations have so far released £9.5 million through the Revitalising Trusts programme. This funding will support local good causes across the country.
The programme is on track and we expect to release £10 million by the end of March 2019.
Asked by: Steve Reed (Labour (Co-op) - Croydon North)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, with reference to page 112 of the Government's August 2018 Civil Society Strategy, what steps he has taken to (a) develop new guidance for all commissioners on grantmaking to small and local charities and (b) update his guidance entitled Commissioning for social action.
Answered by Mims Davies - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
Since the Strategy was published, we have started to scope a programme of work around improving the use of grants. This has involved engagement with the Cabinet Office and with stakeholders. We will confirm more detailed plans in due course.
Asked by: Steve Reed (Labour (Co-op) - Croydon North)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, with reference to page 107 of the Government's Civil Society Strategy, published in August 2018, what steps his Department has taken to extend the support currently offered to public sector teams aspiring to form mutuals to other community-led and social organisations which are already outside the public sector and wish to deliver public services.
Answered by Mims Davies - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
As promised in the Civil Society Strategy, DCMS will launch a public consultation into the definition of public service mutuals (mutuals) and the implications of extending support to create mutuals that do not originate from within the public sector. Government is engaging with the stakeholders over the next few months to help develop its proposals, and intends to launch the public consultation later in 2019.
Asked by: Steve Reed (Labour (Co-op) - Croydon North)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, with reference to page 113 of the Government's Civil Society Strategy, published in August 2018, what steps his Department has taken review the Innovation Partnership model; and what steps his Department is taking to encourage contracting authorities to work directly with partners to research and develop an innovative project or service, including trialling the Innovative Partnership model.
Answered by Mims Davies - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The government is taking steps to explore the use of Innovation Partnerships procedures, with the VCSE Crown Representative also inputting into this initiative. This includes pilots in government, the first of which, the Hydrogen for Heat Programme run by BEIS, has now commenced. Further updates will be provided in due course.
Asked by: Steve Reed (Labour (Co-op) - Croydon North)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, with reference to page 115 of the Government's Civil Society Strategy published in August 2018, whether his Department applies the terms of the Social Value Act to (a) goods and (b) works to account for the social value of new procurement.
Answered by Mims Davies - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
DCMS is continuing to work closely with the Cabinet Office to implement a package of measures for the future of social value and procurement. This was set out in the Civil Society Strategy and announced by Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and Minister for the Cabinet Office, David Lidington.
This includes a project to extend the application of the Social Value Act across central government departments from services to also include goods and works. Departments will be required to evaluate for social value benefits in the tender process too, providing they do not add complexity or cost to the procurement process, restrict markets or exclude small businesses from government contracts.