Asked by: Chris Bryant (Labour - Rhondda)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, when she plans to reply to the correspondence of 13 March 2024 from the hon. Member for Rhondda on correcting the record on Creative Tax Reliefs.
Answered by Julia Lopez - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport will respond to this correspondence as soon as possible.
Asked by: Damian Collins (Conservative - Folkestone and Hythe)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what the value of grants awarded through the Heritage High Street Fund was in (a) the UK and (b) Kent since 2010.
Answered by Julia Lopez - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The Government-funded High Streets Heritage Action Zones programme ran from 2019-2024, operating in England only. It was administered by Historic England. Since 2019, there have been £90,948,829 in grants awarded through the fund.
The programme has funded the transformation and restoration of over 60 high streets, creating economic growth and improving quality of life in these areas.
Two grants were awarded in Kent, in Ramsgate and Chatham. In total, the two schemes were awarded £2,241,797 over the course of the programme.
The High Streets Heritage Action Zone programme came to an end in March 2024.
Asked by: Damian Collins (Conservative - Folkestone and Hythe)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what the (a) number and (b) value of grants made through the Multi-Sport Grassroots Facilities Programme is since 2010.
Answered by Stuart Andrew - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The Multi-Sport Grassroots Facilities Programme is investing over £325 million between 2021 and 2025 to level up facilities across the whole of the UK. The programme provides funding to make essential facility improvements, so that communities have a high-quality pitch to play on, and is a clear demonstration of the government’s commitment to levelling up all corners of the United Kingdom.
Since 2021, over £200 million has been invested in over 2,400 sites across the UK, improving the natural and artificial grass pitches on offer to communities and upgrading floodlights, goalposts, changing rooms and toilet facilities. All funded projects are listed on gov.uk at this link:
Grants that were awarded in England prior to 2021 were delivered by the Football Foundation, funded through Sport England. Sport England’s funding to the Football Foundation is available on their website, along with all awards made by Sport England to football clubs since 2009: https://www.sportengland.org/
Sport is devolved - grants made in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland prior to the Multi-Sports Grassroots Facilities Programme are a matter for the Devolved Administrations.
Asked by: Naz Shah (Labour - Bradford West)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what recent discussions she has had with Sports England on the British Ju Jitsu Association's (a) equality, (b) inclusion and (c) diversity policies.
Answered by Stuart Andrew - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
Following the outcome of a review of its recognised NGB status last summer, the British Ju Jitsu Association Governing Body (BJJAGB) submitted evidence to Sport England relating to its compliance with the Home Country Sports Council's recognition criteria.
It is now for the Home Country Sports Council Boards to decide on the recognition of the organisation. This information will be communicated in the near future.
Asked by: Naz Shah (Labour - Bradford West)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what recent discussions she has had with Sport England on the derecognition of the British Ju Jitsu Association.
Answered by Stuart Andrew - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
Following the outcome of a review of its recognised NGB status last summer, the British Ju Jitsu Association Governing Body (BJJAGB) submitted evidence to Sport England relating to its compliance with the Home Country Sports Council's recognition criteria.
It is now for the Home Country Sports Council Boards to decide on the recognition of the organisation. This information will be communicated in the near future.
Asked by: Damian Collins (Conservative - Folkestone and Hythe)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, how many people have participated in a National Citizen Service programme since 2010.
Answered by Stuart Andrew - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
Over 800,000 young people participated in an NCS programme between 2010/11 and 2022/23. The NCS programme is due to deliver 261,000 experiences between 2023/24 and 2024/25, as per the 2023/24 Annual Business Plan. The number of experiences delivered in the year 2023/24 will be published in the Annual Report later this year.
Asked by: Barry Gardiner (Labour - Brent North)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, with reference to the permanent closure of the British Youth Council, if she will take steps to ensure that unspent grant funding is re-allocated to support other youth organisations.
Answered by Stuart Andrew - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
I was sorry to learn about the closure of the British Youth Council and want to express gratitude for its work over the years. Government is committed to the delivery of the UK Youth Parliament and intends to use funding allocated to BYC in 2024/25 to support the programme. We are working alongside previous UKYP delivery partners from English regions and the devolved administrations, to understand the implications of BYCs closure for programme delivery. We have been working at pace to identify a suitable organisation which can hold overall grant management responsibility for the UKYP 24/25. A preferred candidate has been identified and we are currently undertaking final due diligence checks and negotiating terms and I will update the house as soon as next steps have been formalised.
Asked by: Barry Gardiner (Labour - Brent North)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, whether her Department is taking steps to re-deploy staff at the British Youth Council after its permanent closure.
Answered by Stuart Andrew - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
I was sorry to learn about the closure of the British Youth Council and want to express gratitude for its work over the years. Government is committed to the delivery of the UK Youth Parliament and intends to use funding allocated to BYC in 2024/25 to support the programme. We are working alongside previous UKYP delivery partners from English regions and the devolved administrations, to understand the implications of BYCs closure for programme delivery. We have been working at pace to identify a suitable organisation which can hold overall grant management responsibility for the UKYP 24/25. A preferred candidate has been identified and we are currently undertaking final due diligence checks and negotiating terms and I will update the house as soon as next steps have been formalised.
Asked by: Barry Gardiner (Labour - Brent North)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of the closure of the British Youth Council on the Youth Parliament.
Answered by Stuart Andrew - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
I was sorry to learn about the closure of the British Youth Council and want to express gratitude for its work over the years. Government is committed to the delivery of the UK Youth Parliament and intends to use funding allocated to BYC in 2024/25 to support the programme. We are working alongside previous UKYP delivery partners from English regions and the devolved administrations, to understand the implications of BYCs closure for programme delivery. We have been working at pace to identify a suitable organisation which can hold overall grant management responsibility for the UKYP 24/25. A preferred candidate has been identified and we are currently undertaking final due diligence checks and negotiating terms and I will update the house as soon as next steps have been formalised.
Asked by: Lilian Greenwood (Labour - Nottingham South)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps her Department is taking to provide adequate funding for the youth sector (a) workforce and (b) infrastructure needed to deliver the National Youth Guarantee.
Answered by Stuart Andrew - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The Government recognises the vital role that youth services and activities, and the workforce that delivers them, play in improving the life chances and wellbeing of young people.
While local authorities are responsible for delivering youth provision, the Government has worked closely with local authorities to update statutory guidance to support this delivery. The Government additionally provides significant funding to support youth services, with over £1.1 billion provided to the youth sector from DCMS In England between 2015 and 2021.
Furthermore, over this Spending Review Period, DCMS is investing over £500 million in youth services to deliver the National Youth Guarantee, a government commitment that by 2025, every young person will have access to regular clubs and activities, adventures away from home and opportunities to volunteer. This includes a significant number of interventions. For example, the Youth Investment Fund is delivering grants to build, renovate and expand youth centres, and the Million Hours Fund has created more than a million hours of youth activities in antisocial behaviour hotspots.
To support the workforce, DCMS funds the National Youth Agency (NYA) to set professional standards, qualifications and a curriculum for youth work. In addition, over the past three years we have worked with the NYA to provide bursaries to help more than 2000 youth workers access training and qualifications. DCMS also provides funding to the Regional Youth Work Units to ensure a consistent minimum level of regional leadership, as well as funding to create new Local Youth Partnerships and support existing ones to encourage and build local coordination.