Source · Select Committees · Public Accounts Committee
Recommendation 16
16
We asked the Department whether some organisations had been excluded from the support offered by...
Conclusion
We asked the Department whether some organisations had been excluded from the support offered by the fund and whether certain regions or sectors had been under- represented in the applications.43 We also asked whether it should have a relationship manager function for parts of the sector which it knew less about, such as more commercial organisations.44 The Department reported to us that its arm’s-length bodies had distributed £1.2 billion to 5,000 organisations.45 It told us that success rates for applications were higher outside London and the south-east. ACE pointed out that 70% of successful applications were from outside London and considered that it had made significant investment across the country. The Department was not aware of whether organisations from particular areas did not apply but might have, adding that local cultural significance was an important criterion in assessing bids.46 It said that all applicants that met its financial criteria and cultural significance criteria had received funding.47
Government Response
Not Addressed
HM Government
Not Addressed
4: PAC conclusion: The Department lacks a comprehensive understanding of the coverage and impact of its funding on parts of the sector which found themselves without funds. 4: PAC recommendation: The Department should write to us within three months setting out what it intends to do to support those that were under-represented in terms of the funding they received from the Culture Recovery Fund such as freelancers and festivals. 4.1 The government agrees with the Committee’s recommendation. Target implementation date: mid-September 2021 4.2 DCMS will write to the Committee on this matter by mid-September 2021. However, the government does not agree that it lacks an understanding of the coverage or impact of its funding, nor does the government agree that it has not supported the sectors identified.