Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what recent assessment she has made of the potential impact of rising prices on the financial position of (a) arts organisations, (b) heritage organisations and (c) charities.

The Government continues to assess the impact of rising prices on arts, heritage and charitable organisations, and has taken action to support organisations in these sectors.

Arts Council England, the arm’s-length body of the Department for Culture, Media and Sport responsible for funding arts organisations, continues to monitor the situation through regular conversations with National Portfolio Organisations. Relevant insights are then shared with DCMS through our regular engagement with Arts Council England.

The Heritage Pulse Survey, conducted by the National Lottery Heritage Fund in partnership with Historic England, also regularly shares updates and insights on heritage organisations. The department will keep engaging constructively across both sectors to monitor the impact of higher costs.

The Government has acted to support arts, heritage and charitable organisations, including through the Energy Bill Discount Scheme, which continues to support all organisations with their energy bills until 31 March 2024.

We also recognise that charities are seeing higher levels of demand for their services. That is why in the Spring Budget, the Chancellor announced a package of over £100 million for charities and community organisations in England. This funding is split into two strands and is supporting organisations in need right now. The £76 million Community Organisations Cost of Living Fund has closed for applications, and is awarding funding to frontline organisations supporting vulnerable individuals and households. The second strand, the £25 million VCSE Energy Efficiency Scheme, will support longer-term sustainability, and will launch later this year for applications.