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

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what recent steps she has taken to provide funding to the (a) voluntary, (b) community and (c) social enterprise sector in (i) the North East and (ii) Newcastle upon Tyne East and Wallsend constituency.

The Government has taken a range of steps to provide funding to the Voluntary, Community and Social Enterprise (VCSE) sector in the North East.

The Government recently committed up to an additional £2.8 million for the Know Your Neighbourhood Fund, which is designed to widen participation in volunteering and tackle loneliness. The Government has also committed up to an additional £1 million for the Social Enterprise Boost Fund, a fund which provides business support and grant funding to social entrepreneurs. These place-based programmes will continue delivering funding to the VCSE sector in the North East, specifically Hartlepool, Middlesbrough, County Durham, South Tyneside and Sunderland, as well as other areas in England until March 2026.