Recommendations & Conclusions
11 items
2
Recommendation
Third Report - Impact of COVID-19 on DC…
Accepted
We are concerned that a lack of confidence, and a fear of being in close proximity with people from outside their own household, will affect people’s return to group sports, particularly those that take place indoors (such as indoor exercise classes), those that require physical contact (such as rugby), and …
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We are concerned that a lack of confidence, and a fear of being in close proximity with people from outside their own household, will affect people’s return to group sports, particularly those that take place indoors (such as indoor exercise classes), those that require physical contact (such as rugby), and those that require participants to be in close proximity for extended periods of time (such as rowing). We support requests from the sport sector for clear and effective public messaging from the Government to ensure people feel safe returning to group physical activity. To help to get the UK moving again, the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport should fund advertisements, based on the ‘This Girl Can’ model, using realistic content about how to get back to exercise without fear. In the medium-to-long term, we recommend that DCMS establishes a fund to invest specifically in helping those people whose activity levels have been adversely affected by the lockdown restrictions—including older people, BAME people, disabled people, women, people from lower socio-economic backgrounds and those unable to access physical activity content online—to ensure that the progress that was being made in physical activity levels within these groups is not set back by Covid-19.
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Government response AI summary
The government refers to Sport England's existing "Join the Movement" campaign for physical activity and notes that Sport England’s new strategy will focus on tackling inequalities and supporting those most affected, implying existing and planned work rather than new commitments for advertisements or a specific …
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Department for Culture, Media and Sport
3
Recommendation
Third Report - Impact of COVID-19 on DC…
Accepted
The cessation of community sport countrywide during lockdown has hit under- represented groups the hardest. While we welcome the announcement that some recreational sports teams can now resume play, we are concerned about gyms and leisure centres. These facilities act as community hubs, often providing subsidised facilities to those who …
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The cessation of community sport countrywide during lockdown has hit under- represented groups the hardest. While we welcome the announcement that some recreational sports teams can now resume play, we are concerned about gyms and leisure centres. These facilities act as community hubs, often providing subsidised facilities to those who most need them, but have been the last sport sector to re- open. Following huge levels of uncertainty, it is essential that leisure facilities are protected and have the funds to ensure that the necessary hygiene and social distancing measures can be put in place to re-open fully. The worst outcome would be for local authority funding shortfalls to translate into leisure centre closures; if this were to happen, the Government would risk abrogating its own 2015 Sport Strategy commitment to increase participation in sport by under-represented groups. DCMS’s Sport Working Group must work with local councils to ensure necessary funding is in place to preserve leisure centre facilities. This must be done with urgency so that leisure centres are fully operational in August to provide crucial fitness opportunities for children during the school holidays.
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Government response AI summary
The government states that indoor leisure centres reopened by late July and announced a specific income guarantee scheme to reimburse local councils 75 pence in the pound for lost income, including from leisure centres they own and operate, with ongoing conversations for outsourced services.
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Department for Culture, Media and Sport
4
Recommendation
Third Report - Impact of COVID-19 on DC…
Accepted
We recognise the importance of ‘horizon-scanning’ work to ensuring people maintain and increase their activity levels, which in turn will boost their resilience to the virus. However, smaller organisations are unlikely to have the resources 56 Impact of COVID-19 on DCMS sectors: First Report available to collect data, analyse it …
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We recognise the importance of ‘horizon-scanning’ work to ensuring people maintain and increase their activity levels, which in turn will boost their resilience to the virus. However, smaller organisations are unlikely to have the resources 56 Impact of COVID-19 on DCMS sectors: First Report available to collect data, analyse it and then act on that insight. We believe that Sport England is in the best position to continue this work. We call on DCMS to provide Sport England with the necessary resources for it to prioritise data collection, so that long-term indicators can be developed to help the sports sector better understand the needs of its audiences.
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Government response AI summary
The government highlights the ongoing OpenActive programme, run by Sport England since 2016, which already focuses on data collection to make physical activity opportunities accessible, indicating existing efforts address the recommendation without committing to new resources.
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Department for Culture, Media and Sport
10
Recommendation
Third Report - Impact of COVID-19 on DC…
Accepted
The Department should investigate how the market for recorded music is operating in the era of streaming to ensure that music creators are receiving a fair reward.
Government response AI summary
The government fully recognises the importance of the issue and has the Intellectual Property Office supporting an independent research project to investigate how music creators earn money from streaming, with a report due in Summer 2021.
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Department for Culture, Media and Sport
11
Recommendation
Third Report - Impact of COVID-19 on DC…
Accepted
The Covid-19 crisis presents the biggest threat to the UK’s cultural infrastructure, institutions and workforce in a generation. The loss of performing arts institutions, and the vital work they do in communities by spreading the health and education benefits of cultural engagement, would undermine the aims of the Government’s ‘levelling …
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The Covid-19 crisis presents the biggest threat to the UK’s cultural infrastructure, institutions and workforce in a generation. The loss of performing arts institutions, and the vital work they do in communities by spreading the health and education benefits of cultural engagement, would undermine the aims of the Government’s ‘levelling up’ agenda and Arts Council England’s next 10-year strategy, and reverse decades of progress in cultural provision and diversity and inclusion that we cannot afford to lose. In addition to the emergency funding already announced, the performing arts need a sector-specific recovery deal that includes continued workforce support measures, including enhanced measures for freelancers and small companies; clear, if conditional, timelines for reopening, and technological solutions to enable audiences to return without social distancing; and long-term structural support to rebuild audience figures and investment in time of economic uncertainty.
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Government response AI summary
The government announced a £1.57 billion support package for cultural and arts institutions, committed to supporting freelancers, allowed indoor performances with social distancing, and is actively exploring technological solutions to enable the safe return of fuller audiences.
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Department for Culture, Media and Sport
14
Recommendation
Third Report - Impact of COVID-19 on DC…
Accepted
The Government must learn from the shortcomings of previous support schemes, including those for charities and self-employed people, to ensure this package is tailored to the unique characteristics of the cultural sector and its workers, and reaches them promptly. The Government must recognise the interconnected nature of the cultural 58 …
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The Government must learn from the shortcomings of previous support schemes, including those for charities and self-employed people, to ensure this package is tailored to the unique characteristics of the cultural sector and its workers, and reaches them promptly. The Government must recognise the interconnected nature of the cultural 58 Impact of COVID-19 on DCMS sectors: First Report sector and should not restrict support to well established, high profile, institutions: it is essential that cultural freelancers and small companies in the creative industries supply chain are also eligible for direct support. To reduce uncertainty, the Government must publish eligibility criteria and application guidance as soon as possible, and ensure that the funding reaches recipients no later than October 2020.
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Government response AI summary
The government published the Culture Recovery Fund criteria and application process in early August and began allocating funds, with significant allocations announced by October 2nd, demonstrating it met the deadlines. It confirmed the fund covers various sub-sectors and aims to protect smaller organisations and venues.
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Department for Culture, Media and Sport
16
Recommendation
Third Report - Impact of COVID-19 on DC…
Accepted
Lessons must be learnt from Arts Council England’s emergency funding when it comes to distributing the additional Government support. Support cannot be limited to organisations with a track record of public funding. Although recipients must be able to demonstrate they will use public monies appropriately, such a restrictive criterion risks …
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Lessons must be learnt from Arts Council England’s emergency funding when it comes to distributing the additional Government support. Support cannot be limited to organisations with a track record of public funding. Although recipients must be able to demonstrate they will use public monies appropriately, such a restrictive criterion risks excluding vital parts of the cultural ecology, including whole sectors that have historically had less engagement with funding bodies such as contemporary music, circus and amateur theatre. In allocating additional sector funding, the Government must ensure support reaches cultural sectors and institutions that are in need, irrespective of whether they have previously received subsidy. It must also ensure an equitable distribution of cultural resources across all parts of the UK— north and south, rural and urban—and support for BAME and disabled artists and audiences.
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Government response AI summary
The government details how Arts Council England has already allocated £50 million to non-National Portfolio organisations and is setting criteria to ensure funding reaches diverse cultural sectors, including specific guidance requiring applicants to demonstrate improvements in diversity of workforce, governance, audiences, and participants.
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Department for Culture, Media and Sport
18
Recommendation
Third Report - Impact of COVID-19 on DC…
Accepted
We are concerned that innovative technology-based solutions are being explored across the theatre, sports and festivals sectors without full collaboration between them. This is exactly the issue the Cultural Renewal Taskforce was set up to address. The Cultural Renewal Taskforce must co-ordinate cross-sector work on technological Impact of COVID-19 on …
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We are concerned that innovative technology-based solutions are being explored across the theatre, sports and festivals sectors without full collaboration between them. This is exactly the issue the Cultural Renewal Taskforce was set up to address. The Cultural Renewal Taskforce must co-ordinate cross-sector work on technological Impact of COVID-19 on DCMS sectors: First Report 59 solutions for mass gatherings, ensuring the sports and entertainment sectors work together, alongside NHS Test and Trace, to develop a universal, technological solution to enable the safe return of ticket holders to events.
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Government response AI summary
The government is actively working with performing arts and sports sectors, developing pilot events and using DCMS coordination to ensure learning is shared between sectors on technological solutions for mass gatherings.
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Department for Culture, Media and Sport
20
Recommendation
Third Report - Impact of COVID-19 on DC…
Accepted
The issue of quarantine periods is beyond our remit, so we will limit our comments to saying that the timing and guidance about quarantining have been far from clear. Whilst we understand that there was considerable uncertainty around how the pandemic developed internationally, the tourism sector was in limbo for …
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The issue of quarantine periods is beyond our remit, so we will limit our comments to saying that the timing and guidance about quarantining have been far from clear. Whilst we understand that there was considerable uncertainty around how the pandemic developed internationally, the tourism sector was in limbo for over two months with no certainty as to whether an international visitor market would exist for the rest of 2020. As of July 2020, the Government has announced a list of ‘low risk’, exempt countries from quarantining on arrival in England. We wholeheartedly support calls for the Department for Culture Media and Sport to work with the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and the Department for Transport to clearly communicate information about international travel agreements to the tourism sector, including the science behind the decisions and the plans for reviewing the effectiveness of the agreements.
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Government response AI summary
The government stated that risk assessments for travel arrangements are conducted by the Joint Biosecurity Centre, and officials from DFT and Home Office discuss policies with the tourism industry through working groups and pre-announcement notification lists for key stakeholders. This indicates they are already communicating …
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Department for Culture, Media and Sport
24
Recommendation
Third Report - Impact of COVID-19 on DC…
Accepted
Tourism is an incredibly important force within the UK economy; however, it is more than just the sum of its parts, and it demonstrates vital links to culture, heritage and environmental work. Moreover, tourism is an essential part of many peoples’ lives, and the prospect of some time away from …
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Tourism is an incredibly important force within the UK economy; however, it is more than just the sum of its parts, and it demonstrates vital links to culture, heritage and environmental work. Moreover, tourism is an essential part of many peoples’ lives, and the prospect of some time away from home has, we are sure, been a beacon of hope for many people during the lockdown period. We urge DCMS to launch a national campaign to restore consumer confidence in the domestic UK holiday market. If done quickly, there is still time to boost the end of the summer—plus the autumn and 2021—market. Such a campaign will be hugely beneficial in assisting the tourism industry in clawing back some of the business it has lost during the lockdown period and will help to fill the hole left by the sharp decrease in international visitors to the UK. (Paragraph 98) The role of the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
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Government response AI summary
The government agreed with the recommendation and launched a £10 million "Enjoy Summer Safely" domestic campaign in July, followed by VisitEngland's "Escape the Everyday" campaign in mid-September to boost autumn and winter tourism.
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Department for Culture, Media and Sport
29
Recommendation
Third Report - Impact of COVID-19 on DC…
Accepted
The Cultural Renewal Taskforce and working groups demonstrate a worrying lack of diversity of representation. To ensure that sectors remain accessible to all as they reopen, it is essential that all decisions and proposals by the Cultural Renewal Taskforce and its working groups are accompanied by full equality impact assessments …
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The Cultural Renewal Taskforce and working groups demonstrate a worrying lack of diversity of representation. To ensure that sectors remain accessible to all as they reopen, it is essential that all decisions and proposals by the Cultural Renewal Taskforce and its working groups are accompanied by full equality impact assessments and monitoring.
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Government response AI summary
The government states that its working groups are already diverse and that government departments already undertake analysis of impacts to fulfil the Public Sector Equality Duty, and consider equality impact when making decisions.
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Department for Culture, Media and Sport