Asked by: Maureen Burke (Labour - Glasgow North East)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, how the grassroots sports facilities fund will be used to promote women's football in Scotland.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The Government’s announcement of £8.14m investment in Scotland in 2026/27, via the Multi-Sport Grassroots Facilities Programme, will encourage more people to be active by delivering high-quality grassroots sports facilities.
This funding is designed to benefit areas most in need, based on deprivation and inactivity rates, with 50% of investment being allocated to the 30% most deprived areas in Scotland. Additionally, at least 40% of projects will have a multi-sport offer, allowing more people to participate in a broader range of sports.
The programme also aims to increase participation levels for women and girls in Scotland and across the UK, through ensuring priority use slots for women and girls teams. Projects funded through the programme include new and upgraded changing pavilions, which create more appropriate facilities for women and girls.
The Secretary of State and I recently visited facilities in East Kilbride and The Spartans FC where we saw the impact of this investment.
Asked by: Nadia Whittome (Labour - Nottingham East)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, if she will make it her policy to increase funding for women and girls in sports.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The Government is committed to supporting every aspect of women’s sport and ensuring all women and girls, no matter their background, are able to participate in sport and physical activity.
The This Girl Can campaign, run by our Arm’s Length Body Sport England, has inspired millions of women and girls to get active. 1.6 million women are expected to be active as a result of the campaign by 2028.
We are committed to delivering best in class facilities, with the significant investment of £98 million in 2025/26 and a further £400 million over the next four years in new and upgraded grassroots sport facilities. We are expecting to more than double the share of primetime slots dedicated to women’s and girls’ teams at Government-funded facilities across England over the next five years, with a clear long-term target of reaching equal access as demand grows.
We are working to drive a Decade of Change in women’s sport, kicked off by the 2025 Women’s Rugby World Cup, and we are using the Women's Football Taskforce and Women’s Sport Taskforce to drive progress across the sector.
Further to this, we are increasing visibility of women’s sport, including delivering a drumbeat of UK hosted major events, including this year’s Women's T20 Cricket World Cup 2026 and the Tour de France/Tour de France Femmes Grand Depart 2027, while also supporting the bid for the 2035 FIFA Women's World Cup.
We want to support women and girls at every stage of their lives to get involved in sport.
Asked by: Anna Sabine (Liberal Democrat - Frome and East Somerset)
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 potential impact of hosting the 2035 women's football world cup on the level of participation by women and girls in sport.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
Hosting the 2035 FIFA Women’s World Cup has the potential to be a transformational opportunity for the women’s game, and for women’s sport in the UK more generally. Following the 2022 Women’s EUROs, we saw a 140% increase in participation among women and girls with over 519,000 new grassroots opportunities were created specifically for women and girls across England.
Creating a strong legacy, including boosting participation levels, will be a core aim of delivering the tournament. Should the UK’s bid to host the FIFA Women's World Cup in 2035 be successful, planning will begin on developing the legacy programme, drawing inspiration from events such as the recent Women’s Rugby World Cup as we embark on a decade of women’s sporting moments in the UK.
Asked by: Anna Sabine (Liberal Democrat - Frome and East Somerset)
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 hosting the 2035 women's football world cup on the economy.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The UK Government is working closely with the Home Nation Football Associations and the Devolved Governments to develop the UK-wide bid for the 2035 FIFA Women’s World Cup. As the largest single sport women’s event in the world, this tournament has the potential to generate significant socio-economic benefits, impact communities across the UK, and build on our world-leading reputation as a host of major events.
To illustrate, the FIFA Women’s World Cup in 2023 was estimated to have generated AUS$1.32bn for the economy in Australia and New Zealand. We are working closely with UK Sport, the FAs and Devolved Governments to assess the potential benefits of hosting to inform our collective bid.
Following confirmation that the UK would be the sole bid for 2035, our bid is due to be submitted by the end of November, with a final decision by FIFA expected in April 2026.
Asked by: Louie French (Conservative - Old Bexley and Sidcup)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, with reference to her Department's press release entitled Government teams up with experts to supercharge women’s sport by the 2035 FIFA Women's World Cup, published on 8 September 2025, what steps her Department is taking to ensure those objectives are met by 2035.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The Women's Sport Taskforce was recently launched to drive a Decade of Change in women’s sport.
The Government is working across five key pillars in order to ensure this objective is met. We are ensuring equal access to sport, with an independent expert-led review of the curriculum to ensure all children engage with PE and sport, a new School Sport Partnerships model, and the This Girl Can campaign by Sport England.
We are committed to delivering best in class facilities, with the significant investment of £98 million in 2025/26 and a further £400 million in new and upgraded grassroots sport facilities, doubling priority slots for women and girls.
We are acting on recommendations from the Karen Carney Review of Women's Football and utilising the Women's Football Taskforce and Women’s Sport Taskforce to support world-leading professional environments. Further to this, we are increasing visibility of women’s sport, including delivering a drumbeat of UK hosted major events, with the recent Women's Rugby World Cup 2025, Women's T20 Cricket World Cup 2026, and the Tour de France/Tour de Femmes 2027, while also supporting the bid for the 2035 FIFA Women's World Cup.
Asked by: Edward Morello (Liberal Democrat - West Dorset)
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 the organisers of the Women's Rugby World Cup on the organisation of that event.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The Government is committed to delivering international events with pride, building upon the UK’s global reputation for excellence in staging major sporting events.
The Government holds regular discussions with the Rugby Football Union (RFU) and World Rugby, as joint venture partners, to ensure the successful delivery of the Women's Rugby World Cup (Women’s RWC) 2025. The Secretary of State and I attended the Women’s Rugby World Cup 100 ‘Days to go’ launch event in May 2025, where we discussed tournament delivery with senior RFU figures and other stakeholders.
I also met with senior RFU figures while supporting England at the opening fixture and semi final of the Women's Rugby World Cup and discussed the delivery of the tournament.
We are confident that the great collaboration which has taken place across all delivery partners will result in a landmark moment not just for women’s rugby but for women’s sport.
Asked by: Helen Maguire (Liberal Democrat - Epsom and Ewell)
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 help increase girl’s participation in rugby.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The Government is committed to supporting every aspect of women’s sport and ensuring all women and girls, no matter their background, are able to participate in sport and physical activity.
Sport England’s This Girl Can campaign has inspired millions of women and girls to get active and anticipates that 1.6 million women will be active as a result of the campaign by 2028.
Sport England have awarded the Rugby Football Union £13,859,000 as one of their long-term system partners for the period 2022-27 to support grassroots men’s and women’s rugby union.
DCMS has provided £17.98 million of investment to support England hosting the 2025 Women’s Rugby World Cup, including £6.77m legacy funding.
This tournament can be the springboard for women's rugby, just as the women's EUROs in 2022 was for women’s football. A record-breaking 400,000 tickets have been sold and 43,500 women and girls are now playing rugby. The legacy programme, Impact 25, is pivotal in cementing rugby as a game for all- improving facilities, reaching 850 clubs up and down the country, and supporting greater opportunities for women and girls of all ages to get involved.
We’re also launching the Women’s Sport Taskforce at the Rugby World Cup to tackle challenges and barriers facing women and girls in sport, including rugby, from grassroots to elite. Meeting actions will be published on gov.uk.
Asked by: Helen Maguire (Liberal Democrat - Epsom and Ewell)
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 help increase participation in women's rugby.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The Government is committed to supporting every aspect of women’s sport and ensuring all women and girls, no matter their background, are able to participate in sport and physical activity.
Sport England’s This Girl Can campaign has inspired millions of women and girls to get active and anticipates that 1.6 million women will be active as a result of the campaign by 2028.
Sport England have awarded the Rugby Football Union £13,859,000 as one of their long-term system partners for the period 2022-27 to support grassroots men’s and women’s rugby union.
DCMS has provided £17.98 million of investment to support England hosting the 2025 Women’s Rugby World Cup, including £6.77m legacy funding.
This tournament can be the springboard for women's rugby, just as the women's EUROs in 2022 was for women’s football. A record-breaking 400,000 tickets have been sold and 43,500 women and girls are now playing rugby. The legacy programme, Impact 25, is pivotal in cementing rugby as a game for all- improving facilities, reaching 850 clubs up and down the country, and supporting greater opportunities for women and girls of all ages to get involved.
We’re also launching the Women’s Sport Taskforce at the Rugby World Cup to tackle challenges and barriers facing women and girls in sport, including rugby, from grassroots to elite. Meeting actions will be published on gov.uk.
Asked by: Luke Evans (Conservative - Hinckley and Bosworth)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, when she last met the (a) Rugby Football Union and (b) Premiership Rugby; and what issues were discussed.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
I met with senior RFU figures while supporting England at the opening fixture of the Women's Rugby World Cup. There I discussed the delivery of the tournament as well as other policy issues, including the demand for women’s sport, government support for women’s sport and the RFU’s legacy programme for the tournament: Impact 25. The Secretary of State and I also attended the Women’s Rugby World Cup 100 ‘Days to go’ launch event in May 2025, where we discussed tournament delivery with senior RFU figures and other stakeholders.
I met with Premiership Rugby in November 2024 to discuss the long-term financial sustainability of professional rugby union. Since then, my officials have engaged with Premiership Rugby regularly.
Asked by: Edward Morello (Liberal Democrat - West Dorset)
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 help encourage girls to participate in grassroots rugby in (a) schools and (b) local clubs through its funding for the Impact 25 programme.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
Since July 2024 the Government has invested £6.78m in Impact 25 the legacy programme for the 2025 Women’s Rugby World Cup. Impact 25 supports women's and girls' clubs across England as part of the Rugby Football Union’s ambition to widen female participation. It has provided investment to 850 clubs to improve facilities and to train 3,385 new female coaches and match officials, making coaching sessions and matches more accessible contributing to a 35% increase in female age grade registrations in England rising from 17,700 places in 2022 to 23,900 in 2025.
The programme has provided direct support to clubs in the West Dorset constituency, providing £10,000 of funding to Bridport RFC , Dorchester RFC and Sherborne RFC. Each club received funding for a ‘Girls Activity Day Pack’ to introduce girls aged 6-12 to rugby with activities, merchandise, and prizes (such as tickets to a Women's Rugby World Cup match). All clubs also received sanitary product packages which are made freely available in club restrooms.
More broadly, we want as many girls as possible to get involved in sport and physical activity, including in schools. That is why on 19 June 2025, the Government announced a new School Sport Partnerships model and a new Enrichment Framework for schools to ensure all young people have equal access to high-quality sport and extracurricular activity. Girls will be given the same opportunity as boys to play sports at school.