Asked by: Tom Hayes (Labour - Bournemouth East)
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 swimming pool closures on the ability of children to meet national curriculum standards for swimming by age 11.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The Government recognises that sports clubs and facilities are important to communities up and down the country. High-quality, inclusive facilities help people of all ages get active and provide vital facilities for children to learn to swim and about water safety. Everyone, no matter who they are or where they live, should have access to them and opportunities to participate in sport and physical activity.
The ongoing responsibility of providing access to public leisure swimming facilities lies at local authority level. We are committed to supporting Local Government, recognising the significant financial challenges faced by the sector and by ensuring that funding goes to the places that need it most through the Local Government Finance Settlement.
The Government encourages local authorities and local leaders to make investments which offer the right opportunities and facilities (including swimming pools) for the communities they serve, investing in sport and physical activity with a place-based approach, to meet the needs of individual communities. This is complemented by the support and guidance available through the Government’s Arm’s Length Body, Sport England.
Sport England tracks usage of swimming pools through Moving Communities to understand usage, including by children and by a user’s home postcode, to build an evidence base on usage in areas of higher deprivation.
Sport England are closely monitoring swimming pool stock through their Active Places tool. This evidence shows that since 2015 there has been a total of 291 swimming pool closures (on sites owned by Local Authorities), whilst there have been a total of 254 new swimming pools opened during this period.
We will continue to engage with a full range of stakeholders to explore how we can work towards securing a vibrant future for swimming pools, enabling them to continue delivering their full potential for public health, economic growth, and the wellbeing of our communities.
All future funding of sports facilities beyond 2025/26 will be considered following the Spending Review and the Government will set out further plans in due course.
Asked by: Tom Hayes (Labour - Bournemouth East)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment her Department has made of the adequacy of the level of financial support available for publicly-funded swimming pools.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The Government recognises that sports clubs and facilities are important to communities up and down the country. High-quality, inclusive facilities help people of all ages get active and provide vital facilities for children to learn to swim and about water safety. Everyone, no matter who they are or where they live, should have access to them and opportunities to participate in sport and physical activity.
The ongoing responsibility of providing access to public leisure swimming facilities lies at local authority level. We are committed to supporting Local Government, recognising the significant financial challenges faced by the sector and by ensuring that funding goes to the places that need it most through the Local Government Finance Settlement.
The Government encourages local authorities and local leaders to make investments which offer the right opportunities and facilities (including swimming pools) for the communities they serve, investing in sport and physical activity with a place-based approach, to meet the needs of individual communities. This is complemented by the support and guidance available through the Government’s Arm’s Length Body, Sport England.
Sport England tracks usage of swimming pools through Moving Communities to understand usage, including by children and by a user’s home postcode, to build an evidence base on usage in areas of higher deprivation.
Sport England are closely monitoring swimming pool stock through their Active Places tool. This evidence shows that since 2015 there has been a total of 291 swimming pool closures (on sites owned by Local Authorities), whilst there have been a total of 254 new swimming pools opened during this period.
We will continue to engage with a full range of stakeholders to explore how we can work towards securing a vibrant future for swimming pools, enabling them to continue delivering their full potential for public health, economic growth, and the wellbeing of our communities.
All future funding of sports facilities beyond 2025/26 will be considered following the Spending Review and the Government will set out further plans in due course.
Asked by: Tom Hayes (Labour - Bournemouth East)
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 local authorities on funding for (a) leisure and (b) swimming facilities.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The Government recognises that sports clubs and facilities are important to communities up and down the country. High-quality, inclusive facilities help people of all ages get active and provide vital facilities for children to learn to swim and about water safety. Everyone, no matter who they are or where they live, should have access to them and opportunities to participate in sport and physical activity.
The ongoing responsibility of providing access to public leisure swimming facilities lies at local authority level. We are committed to supporting Local Government, recognising the significant financial challenges faced by the sector and by ensuring that funding goes to the places that need it most through the Local Government Finance Settlement.
The Government encourages local authorities and local leaders to make investments which offer the right opportunities and facilities (including swimming pools) for the communities they serve, investing in sport and physical activity with a place-based approach, to meet the needs of individual communities. This is complemented by the support and guidance available through the Government’s Arm’s Length Body, Sport England.
Sport England tracks usage of swimming pools through Moving Communities to understand usage, including by children and by a user’s home postcode, to build an evidence base on usage in areas of higher deprivation.
Sport England are closely monitoring swimming pool stock through their Active Places tool. This evidence shows that since 2015 there has been a total of 291 swimming pool closures (on sites owned by Local Authorities), whilst there have been a total of 254 new swimming pools opened during this period.
We will continue to engage with a full range of stakeholders to explore how we can work towards securing a vibrant future for swimming pools, enabling them to continue delivering their full potential for public health, economic growth, and the wellbeing of our communities.
All future funding of sports facilities beyond 2025/26 will be considered following the Spending Review and the Government will set out further plans in due course.
Asked by: Tom Hayes (Labour - Bournemouth East)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps she is taking to support councils in upgrading aging (a) swimming and (b) leisure facilities.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The Government recognises that sports clubs and facilities are important to communities up and down the country. High-quality, inclusive facilities help people of all ages get active and provide vital facilities for children to learn to swim and about water safety. Everyone, no matter who they are or where they live, should have access to them and opportunities to participate in sport and physical activity.
The ongoing responsibility of providing access to public leisure swimming facilities lies at local authority level. We are committed to supporting Local Government, recognising the significant financial challenges faced by the sector and by ensuring that funding goes to the places that need it most through the Local Government Finance Settlement.
The Government encourages local authorities and local leaders to make investments which offer the right opportunities and facilities (including swimming pools) for the communities they serve, investing in sport and physical activity with a place-based approach, to meet the needs of individual communities. This is complemented by the support and guidance available through the Government’s Arm’s Length Body, Sport England.
Sport England tracks usage of swimming pools through Moving Communities to understand usage, including by children and by a user’s home postcode, to build an evidence base on usage in areas of higher deprivation.
Sport England are closely monitoring swimming pool stock through their Active Places tool. This evidence shows that since 2015 there has been a total of 291 swimming pool closures (on sites owned by Local Authorities), whilst there have been a total of 254 new swimming pools opened during this period.
We will continue to engage with a full range of stakeholders to explore how we can work towards securing a vibrant future for swimming pools, enabling them to continue delivering their full potential for public health, economic growth, and the wellbeing of our communities.
All future funding of sports facilities beyond 2025/26 will be considered following the Spending Review and the Government will set out further plans in due course.
Asked by: Tom Hayes (Labour - Bournemouth East)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, whether she has considered making (a) swimming pool provision and (b) other leisure provision a statutory duty for local authorities.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The Government recognises that sports clubs and facilities are important to communities up and down the country. High-quality, inclusive facilities help people of all ages get active and provide vital facilities for children to learn to swim and about water safety. Everyone, no matter who they are or where they live, should have access to them and opportunities to participate in sport and physical activity.
The ongoing responsibility of providing access to public leisure swimming facilities lies at local authority level. We are committed to supporting Local Government, recognising the significant financial challenges faced by the sector and by ensuring that funding goes to the places that need it most through the Local Government Finance Settlement.
The Government encourages local authorities and local leaders to make investments which offer the right opportunities and facilities (including swimming pools) for the communities they serve, investing in sport and physical activity with a place-based approach, to meet the needs of individual communities. This is complemented by the support and guidance available through the Government’s Arm’s Length Body, Sport England.
Sport England tracks usage of swimming pools through Moving Communities to understand usage, including by children and by a user’s home postcode, to build an evidence base on usage in areas of higher deprivation.
Sport England are closely monitoring swimming pool stock through their Active Places tool. This evidence shows that since 2015 there has been a total of 291 swimming pool closures (on sites owned by Local Authorities), whilst there have been a total of 254 new swimming pools opened during this period.
We will continue to engage with a full range of stakeholders to explore how we can work towards securing a vibrant future for swimming pools, enabling them to continue delivering their full potential for public health, economic growth, and the wellbeing of our communities.
All future funding of sports facilities beyond 2025/26 will be considered following the Spending Review and the Government will set out further plans in due course.
Asked by: Tom Hayes (Labour - Bournemouth East)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps she is taking to help support councils to upgrade public swimming facilities.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The Government recognises that sports clubs and facilities are important to communities up and down the country. High-quality, inclusive facilities help people of all ages get active and provide vital facilities for children to learn to swim and about water safety. Everyone, no matter who they are or where they live, should have access to them and opportunities to participate in sport and physical activity.
The ongoing responsibility of providing access to public leisure swimming facilities lies at local authority level. We are committed to supporting Local Government, recognising the significant financial challenges faced by the sector and by ensuring that funding goes to the places that need it most through the Local Government Finance Settlement.
The Government encourages local authorities and local leaders to make investments which offer the right opportunities and facilities (including swimming pools) for the communities they serve, investing in sport and physical activity with a place-based approach, to meet the needs of individual communities. This is complemented by the support and guidance available through the Government’s Arm’s Length Body, Sport England.
Sport England tracks usage of swimming pools through Moving Communities to understand usage, including by children and by a user’s home postcode, to build an evidence base on usage in areas of higher deprivation.
Sport England are closely monitoring swimming pool stock through their Active Places tool. This evidence shows that since 2015 there has been a total of 291 swimming pool closures (on sites owned by Local Authorities), whilst there have been a total of 254 new swimming pools opened during this period.
We will continue to engage with a full range of stakeholders to explore how we can work towards securing a vibrant future for swimming pools, enabling them to continue delivering their full potential for public health, economic growth, and the wellbeing of our communities.
All future funding of sports facilities beyond 2025/26 will be considered following the Spending Review and the Government will set out further plans in due course.
Asked by: Tom Hayes (Labour - Bournemouth East)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps is she taking to increase access to affordable swimming lessons.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The Government recognises that sports clubs and facilities are important to communities up and down the country. High-quality, inclusive facilities help people of all ages get active and provide vital facilities for children to learn to swim and about water safety. Everyone, no matter who they are or where they live, should have access to them and opportunities to participate in sport and physical activity.
The ongoing responsibility of providing access to public leisure swimming facilities lies at local authority level. We are committed to supporting Local Government, recognising the significant financial challenges faced by the sector and by ensuring that funding goes to the places that need it most through the Local Government Finance Settlement.
The Government encourages local authorities and local leaders to make investments which offer the right opportunities and facilities (including swimming pools) for the communities they serve, investing in sport and physical activity with a place-based approach, to meet the needs of individual communities. This is complemented by the support and guidance available through the Government’s Arm’s Length Body, Sport England.
Sport England tracks usage of swimming pools through Moving Communities to understand usage, including by children and by a user’s home postcode, to build an evidence base on usage in areas of higher deprivation.
Sport England are closely monitoring swimming pool stock through their Active Places tool. This evidence shows that since 2015 there has been a total of 291 swimming pool closures (on sites owned by Local Authorities), whilst there have been a total of 254 new swimming pools opened during this period.
We will continue to engage with a full range of stakeholders to explore how we can work towards securing a vibrant future for swimming pools, enabling them to continue delivering their full potential for public health, economic growth, and the wellbeing of our communities.
All future funding of sports facilities beyond 2025/26 will be considered following the Spending Review and the Government will set out further plans in due course.
Asked by: Tom Hayes (Labour - Bournemouth East)
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 implications for her polices of trends in levels publicly-funded swimming pool closures since 2019.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The Government recognises that sports clubs and facilities are important to communities up and down the country. High-quality, inclusive facilities help people get active. Everyone, no matter who they are or where they live, should have access to them and opportunities to participate in sport and physical activity.
Sport and physical activity, especially activities such as swimming, play a vital role in tackling the health challenges facing our nation through helping to treat and manage a wide range of health conditions. Swimming is not just a great way to get active, it is a fundamental life skill.
Sport England Active Places data evidences that since 2015 there has been a total of 291 swimming pool closures (on sites owned by Local Authorities), whilst there have been a total of 254 new swimming pools opened during this period.
We will continue to engage with Swim England, ukactive, and other key stakeholders to explore how we can work towards securing a vibrant future for swimming pools, enabling them to continue delivering their full potential for public health, economic growth, and the wellbeing of our communities.
The ongoing responsibility of providing access to public leisure swimming facilities lies at local authority level. We are committed to supporting Local Government, recognising the significant financial challenges faced by the sector and by ensuring that funding goes to the places that need it most through the Local Government Finance Settlement.
We do not have plans to set targets, as it is for local areas to determine what they need, but we believe that robust plans should be in place.
Asked by: Tom Hayes (Labour - Bournemouth East)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, whether she plans to introduce a national strategy for (a) community leisure provision and (b) swimming facilities.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The Government recognises that sports clubs and facilities are important to communities up and down the country. High-quality, inclusive facilities help people get active. Everyone, no matter who they are or where they live, should have access to them and opportunities to participate in sport and physical activity.
Sport and physical activity, especially activities such as swimming, play a vital role in tackling the health challenges facing our nation through helping to treat and manage a wide range of health conditions. Swimming is not just a great way to get active, it is a fundamental life skill.
Sport England Active Places data evidences that since 2015 there has been a total of 291 swimming pool closures (on sites owned by Local Authorities), whilst there have been a total of 254 new swimming pools opened during this period.
We will continue to engage with Swim England, ukactive, and other key stakeholders to explore how we can work towards securing a vibrant future for swimming pools, enabling them to continue delivering their full potential for public health, economic growth, and the wellbeing of our communities.
The ongoing responsibility of providing access to public leisure swimming facilities lies at local authority level. We are committed to supporting Local Government, recognising the significant financial challenges faced by the sector and by ensuring that funding goes to the places that need it most through the Local Government Finance Settlement.
We do not have plans to set targets, as it is for local areas to determine what they need, but we believe that robust plans should be in place.
Asked by: Noah Law (Labour - St Austell and Newquay)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps she is taking to support (a) Newquay Airport and (b) other small regional airports as part of the development of the National Tourism Strategy.
Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
DCMS has no direct responsibility for regional airports such as Newquay, but they play a critical role in supporting an efficient aviation sector that in turn supports tourism, business travel, and the wider UK economy.
DCMS recently established the Visitor Economy Advisory Council to bring together industry leaders, regional voices and expert advisers to inform policy and ensure that the sector's growth is inclusive and sustainable. DCMS’ upcoming Visitor Economy Growth Strategy will consider how best to support the sector’s development, including the role of Local Visitor Economy Partnerships (LVEPs) - ensuring a coordinated approach to driving growth across destinations and sectors.
The Government is committed to continued collaboration with the DfT and other relevant authorities to address challenges and continued improvement of the aviation sector for England's regional airports, and that the UK continues to be an attractive destination for international visitors and businesses alike.