Culture, tourism & sport bulletin: September 2020

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Culture, tourism & sport bulletin

September 2020
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Dear colleagues,

After a busy few months, the majority of our services now have permission to reopen, and most areas have been able to open some facilities. However, we also know that there are many challenges still facing services and that these initial offers may look very different from the pre COVID-19 world. We are working to make Government and civil servants aware of how services are being affected and would welcome information from members on the state of play in their area. For instance, while over 50 per cent of public leisure facilities are now open, the proportion of swimming pools reopened is significantly lower, and many sports halls have been repurposed to take gym equipment, in turn impacting on indoor sports like badminton and tennis. Managing expectations of both Government and our residents will be crucial in the foreseeable future.

The LGA is therefore committed to continuing our conversations with key Government departments, such as the  Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) and the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) about how our services are being affected, and  the long-term impacts of COVID-19 on the sector, making Government aware of the support that continues to be needed. We are also working with finance and commercial directors to consider the impact of reduced membership and ticket sales on the financial model for culture and leisure. The LGA is now in full planning mode for our Spending Review submission, which will feature the importance of culture, tourism and sport services in both levelling up and helping the economy and communities to recover. We will also be highlighting how some entrepreneurial services such as leisure, which were not only self-sustaining but also generating income to subsidise other public services, are now among the hardest hit by COVID-19 changes and require subsidy themselves in order to survive. We continue to make the case for an immediate investment in sports and leisure facilities, ahead of and separate from the Spending Review decisions.

On 5 August, I was pleased to launch the document Creative Places: supporting your local creative economy which is designed to help councils understand the creative sector, illustrated by examples, case studies and  tips from councils across England. It focuses on the role creativity has in shaping our response to climate change, globalisation and technological innovation – and in enabling the economy and society to ‘bounce forwards’ from the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. Almost 300 of you joined the launch event, with the Creative Industries Federation, Golant Innovation, Kent County Council and Leeds City Council. The response has been extremely positive, and we hope that many of you will use it as a resource that will shape innovative service delivery in the months and years that follow. If you were unable to attend, you can view the presentations on supporting your local creative economy.

If you have any cases of best practices, or have specific ideas around issues that you would like raised at a national level, please contact us directly at CTS@local.gov.uk.

Councillor Gerald Vernon-Jackson CBE
Chair, LGA Culture, Tourism and Sport Board

 Cllr Vernon Jackson

Visit our Culture, Tourism and Sport webpages and follow us on Twitter @LGAculturesport 

Share good practice or raise an issue for the LGA to look at via e-mail cts@local.gov.uk

Stories

LGA press release: Creative industries can play a key role in COVID-19 recovery

Councils across the country are backing the creative industries to help drive economic recovery in local areas. The LGA recently published a guide to help councils to support their local creative industries recover from the coronavirus pandemic and to boost the creative economy. The LGA's press release highlights that the latest Government statistics show that creative industries, including small and medium businesses and organisations that specialise in arts, culture, design, music and TV and film, contribute more than £111 billion to the UK economy, which is an extremely positive message for the sector.

LGA responds to DCMS report on impact of COVID-19 on culture and sport

The DCMS select committee has published the results of its inquiry into the impact of COVID-19 on DCMS sectors. We were delighted that one of the key recommendations was that “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.”

Responding to the DCMS Committe report on the impact of coronavirus, Cllr Gerald Vernon-Jackson, Chair of the LGA’s Culture, Tourism and Sport Board,  stated that “It is positive that the vital contribution that councils cultural and leisure services make to our communities’ physical and mental health has been recognised”.

LGA responds to DCMS report on impact of COVID-19 on culture and sport

LGA responds to culture funding announcement

Responding to the Government’s £500 million funding scheme to kickstart film and television production struggling to secure insurance for COVID-19 related costs, the LGA has issued a statement: “This emergency support for our cultural and creative sectors is positive and a vote of confidence in their contribution to society, our economy, and our standing in the world.

Government announces the mandatory wearing of face masks in shops

Government recently announced and enforced the wearing of face masks in all high street shops to ensure that shoppers feel even more confident about returning to the high street. The announcement came as sales assistants, cashiers and security guards had been identified as suffering disproportionately from the crisis. This is just one example that we expect to see in the coming months where the tightening and loosening of restrictions is expected to become more prevalent. This information relates to the use of face coverings in public spaces where social distancing is not always possible. It is important to follow all the other Government advice on COVID-19 including staying safe outside your home.

£5 million for social prescribing to tackle the impact of COVID-19

The National Academy for Social Prescribing has been awarded £5 million in funding to support people to stay connected and maintain their health and wellbeing following the COVID-19 pandemic. Working with partners, including Arts Council England, Natural England, Money and Pensions Service, NHS Charities Together, Sport England and NHS England, the academy will support a range of local community activities, including improved green spaces, singing and physical activities as well as access to tailored debt advice.

New parks campaign: ‘Keep Britain Tidy’

Due to the increasing number of people enjoying local parks during the pandemic, recent research indicates that 50 per cent of parks services have been stretched, due to the increase in anti-social behaviour since lockdown was eased. With over 100 local authorities contributing to the survey data, we can estimate that the average council has spent an additional £33,000 on managing parks. Councils also reported clearing up, on average, 57 tonnes of additional waste from their parks. During the summer holiday period an additional £47,000 is expected to be spent per council on staffing in order to deal with pressures on facilities and park management.

To support parks staff, ‘Keep Britain Tidy’ has launched a new campaign under the umbrella of ‘Love Parks’. 

Public Health England (PHE): ‘Better Health’ campaign

During the COVID-19 pandemic, it has become increasingly evident that behaviours have shifted and that more people are making healthy lifestyle changes to prioritise their wellbeing. Public Health England's 'Better Health' campaign is aimed at helping people across the country to reset and introduce healthy changes to their lives. Focusing on weight loss, smoking habits and alcohol consumption, the campaign seeks to support those who want to do away with such habits. To ensure that physical activity remains a vital component in the overall strategy, Sport England is influencing many components of the campaign. 

Find out more about the Better Health campaign

Government strategy to tackling obesity

Government recently announced its plans to tackle obesity. With leisure centres facing a precarious situation in the previous months and the risk of closure, the revival of these leisure centres will be critical for the fundamental role they are required to play in improving the health outcomes of the population. The significant financial impact of the COVID-19 crisis is over £180 million compared with the same period last year (March to July), which has led the Chief Cultural & Leisure Officers Association to call on Government for a rescue package of ring-fenced funding to save public leisure centres from permanent closure.

Councils awarded £800,000 to build on digital advances  

Communities across the country are set to benefit from better local services as councils receive a share of £800,000 for innovative digital projects. The Local Digital Fund will use innovation to solve common problems facing councils as they respond to the coronavirus pandemic. Examples include £67,500 for Newcastle City Council to develop a tool which predicts whether parts of a city are overcrowded and will help understand whether social distancing can be followed. Meanwhile, Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole Council will receive £34,000 to help them add extra functionality to a smartphone application they have developed, which aims to prevent overcrowding on its beaches by telling people how busy sections are to ensure social distancing.

Culture, hospitality, tourism and leisure

DCMS is inviting organisations to take part in a second round of a survey being conducted to understand the impact of the coronavirus outbreak on organisations in the digital, culture, media, sport, gambling, telecoms, and tourism sectors. Please follow the link below to begin submitting your response: DCMS Coronavirus Impact Business Survey - Round 2

Guidance and support

LGA guidance on outdoor events

We know that there has been some uncertainty about the extent to which outdoor events, particularly large events, are currently permitted to take place, with both councils and business organisations raising this issue with the LGA. We also know of concerns among councils at the prospect of festival type or very large events being organised in their areas. In response the LGA has published a short guidance note for councils which brings together relevant guidance on outdoor events and provides an overview of the current position.

Government guidance

Cultural Recovery Fund

Following the Government £1.57 billion funding announcement to support world-class cultural, arts and heritage institutions. Arts Council England (ACE) have now announced the initiation of the Culture Recovery Fund grants which seeks to offer financial support for cultural organisations that were financially stable before COVID-19, but are now at imminent risk of failure. The total £500 million fund means cultural organisations (both profit and not for profit) are able to submit a bid of between £50,000 and £3 million of funding. Round 1 closed on 21 August and Round 2 shortly closes on 4 September.

Apply for the Culture Recovery Fund

ACE has also announced the Cultural Recovery Fund’s Repayable Finance scheme, for ‘culturally significant’ organisations that are at imminent risk of failure. The scheme opened on 21 August and closes on 9 September.

With £30 million being distribution for Independent Cinemas in England, the British Film Institute has now released its own guidelines for independent cinemas (deadline 30 October).

Parliamentary

LGA responds to Government's arts funding announcement

The Government announced £1.57 billion support package to help protect the future of UK theatres, galleries, museums and other cultural venues through emergency grants and loans. The funding is expected to support employment, including freelancers who have been particularly hard hit within the cultural sector. Recognising the funding as a lifeline to many theatres, galleries and museums which have been severely impacted by COVID-19, and the role that councils play in contributing to arts and culture, the LGA has issued a response to the package welcoming its availability and stating that councils are well placed to direct this funding to places of most need, as the funding must reach beyond national institutions. It is worth noting that this funding is designed as a ‘rescue’ package, and that longer term transformation proposals, in response to COVID-19, and will need to be developed for the forthcoming Spending Round.

LGA responds to Government's arts funding announcement

The Government announced a £1.57 billion support package to help protect the future of UK theatres, galleries, museums and other cultural venues through emergency grants and loans. The funding is expected to support employment, including freelancers who have been particularly hard hit within the cultural sector. Recognising the funding as a lifeline to many theatres, galleries and museums which have been severely impacted by COVID-19, and the role that councils play in contributing to arts and culture, the LGA has issued a response to the package welcoming its availability and stating that councils are well placed to direct this funding to places of most need, as the funding must reach beyond national institutions. It is worth noting that this funding is designed as a 'rescue' package, and that longer term transformation proposals, in response to COVID-19, and will need to be developed for the forthcoming Spending Round.

APPG for hospitality and tourism coasts and waters inquiry

The LGA was asked to submit a paper to the APPG for hospitality and tourism coasts, in order to highlight some of the distinct concerns that coastal and lakeside businesses have had in the previous months, as well as the months that follow. Here, the LGA underscored the financial pressures that social distancing has created for local businesses, and the need to financial support to be provided to hospitality businesses in both the short and long term. Building on evidence shared to us from councils, we have called on Government to make better investments in managing the safety of beaches, provide clearer guidance to councils, and support councils to promote tourism in a sustainable manner. The LGA understands how the pandemic has crystallised the negative impacts of seasonality, low wages, over-dependence of out-dated infrastructure, and pressure on the environment and will continue to advocate for coastal communities in its lobbying efforts.

Letter to Secretary of State, Oliver Dowden: Spending Review

The LGA is writing to the Department of Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) Secretary of State, Oliver Dowden, ahead of the Comprehensive Spending Review (CSR) laying out our asks of Government. Amongst many, these asks include:

  • A strategic investment of £500 million for councils to spend on leisure facilities to help sustain the sector, reduce obesity, improve physical and mental health, ensure a more active nation and reduce our carbon footprint.
  • Government to design a model which empowers councils to manage the roll-out of gigabit broadband.
  • Tourism zones to be expanded in number and scope with appropriately scaled funding levels depending on the needs of the area.
  • Councils with seaside resorts to be allocated funding based on their local area’s needs.
  • To invest £30 million capital funding in libraries to turbocharge the country’s renewal, close the digital divide and grow entrepreneurs in every council area.

Publications

The recent pandemic has highlighted the value of our culture, tourism and sport services in previous months. Building on this momentum, as well as the vital role councils have proudly shown to residents, means a number of valuable initiatives will help to rebuild the economy in creative ways. A series of interesting publications are outlined below:

LGA: ‘Creative Places - supporting your local creative economy’

As the UK faces the challenges of the 21st century, creativity has a role to play in shaping our response to climate change, globalisation and technological innovation – and in enabling the economy and society to ‘bounce forwards’ from the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. This is why the LGA has published Creative Places: supporting your local creative economy which is designed to help councils understand the creative sector, illustrated by examples and case studies and with tips from councils across England. Whilst the majority of the research and drafting was undertaken before the COVID-19 crisis, the measures outlined are still vital to supporting what is an incredibly important asset to our local economies and communities.

LGA annual conference paper: 'Re-thinking Local'

COVID-19 and the challenges it has presented to councils up and down the country has highlighted the intrinsic role that councils play in the delivery of vital services. Taking many learnings from the current pandemic, the LGA recently launched its annual conference paper, Rethinking Local, which has already stimulated the conversation about the importance of thinking more local as we start to think about what comes next for local public services in upcoming months. The paper lays out a series of asks and offers to Government.

Sharing ideas

The current pandemic is currently highlighting the critical role that culture and leisure services play in our daily lives, especially regarding the positive impact they have on mental and physical wellbeing. Whilst the past few months have been characterised by a period of challenge, with challenge also comes opportunity. See below for examples of ways in local government is developing creative and innovative solutions.

LGA culture/skills

The LGA is interested in hearing from councils interested in exploring the idea of using cultural venues, (which are otherwise not financially viable through current social distancing measures), as spaces for local skills development, education and training. The COVID-19 pandemic is anticipated to create mass unemployment, meaning that there will be an urgent need to develop skills of those who are currently unemployed or furloughed. We have heard of some councils who have done some work in this space. If this sounds like something your council is keen to explore, please get in touch with maria.collinge@local.gov.uk / cts@local.gov.uk.

LGA evaluation of Sector-Led Improvement (SLI)

A large part of the LGA's work is providing a range of practical support on a free of charge and/or subsidised basis to enable local authorities to obtain support of a corporate nature such as leadership programmes, peer challenge, LG Inform (our benchmarking service) and programmes tailored to specific service areas such as children's, adults', health, care, financial, culture, tourism, sport and planning services. The Culture, Tourism and Sport team’s Improvement training and workshops fall under the umbrella and for the past few months, an independent review of sector-led improvement has been undertaken. The review underscores the invaluable contribution sector-led improvement brings to the sector, as well as a series of recommendations for the LGA to reflect and improve on to ensure the most robust outcomes for councils.

LGA Improvement support during COVID-19

The challenges of COVID-19 created unanticipated challenges for the culture, tourism and sport sectors. It was important that both officers and members were still given the virtual space to connect with one another, share challenges, and help the LGA to understand what the future looks like. The Culture, Tourism and Sport team responded with a series of online workshops to ensure that both officers and members received the support they needed during this critical time. Facilitated discussions, delivered between April and July, allowed officers and members to reflect on the challenges in their own communities and work together to share how they adapt and innovate service delivery. In turn, they have helped to shape the LGA policy direction. Find out more about what we learnt and how the LGA responded on our website.

Lawn Tennis Association: parks tennis video

The Lawn Tennis Association has released a video across their social media channels focusing on parks tennis. Local authorities have been showing a high level of interest over the summer around their package of parks tennis initiatives. You can watch their video on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram now. You can read more about the Lawn Tennis Association's work with councils like Lewisham.

Rethinking the future of physical activity 

At the LGA's annual conference, Sport England joined the conversation to inform delegates about their conversations around sport and physical activity, and the critical role local government plays in shaping an active nation. The COVID-19 pandemic has led Sport England to re-prioritise sport and physical activity. As they continue to develop their strategy which will be published in 2021, their 'Shaping our Future' strategy document is paving the way to stimulate conversations with key partners and organisations and welcomes views from the sector to help refine their strategy. The conference webinar was informative and stimulating, with council chief executives sharing their own perspectives on how local government can re-imagine physical activity and set plans for a safe recovery. Please download the presentations from Rethinking the future of physical activity.

Media

Lack of clarity of theatre reopening date

Culture Secretary Oliver Dowden spoke on BBC Radio 4 stating that indoor performances without social distancing could resume only when it was 'safe to do so' and that information on when this will be possible would be given in November. This is in response to the Government's 'roadmap for theatres' document. Pressure is mounting to Government to provide a clearer indication of a 'no earlier' than date for organisations, so that they can understand when performances can resume. Last week, Andrew Lloyd Webber called for clarity, as pantomime producers need to know by the beginning of August whether they can go ahead so that they can plan for the critical Christmas season. 

Dowden: No date for full theatre reopenings before November

Research

Sports club: planning application guide

Sport England has updated Making a planning application: A guide for sports clubs

This guide is relevant to clubs thinking of doing one or more of the following:

  • replacing or enhancing existing sports facilities
  • building new sports facilities
  • relocating to a new site
  • holding a temporary or permanent sports event.

The guide includes practical advice that will help clubs across the country prepare their planning application in order to maximise their chances of success.

Impact of COVID-19 on the sport for development sector

The Sport for Development Coalition published a report, Impact of COVID-19 on the sport for development sector, which unveils the 'profound effect' that the current pandemic is having on community sports projects and organisations. Key findings include tightening of funding and forced reductions in delivery models, as well as challenges in engaging participants. In particular, the report offers examples of how a lack of organised sport has had a negative impact on some of the most vulnerable people in society.

Local voices: life during coronavirus

Sport England has drawn together insights from local communities across England and found nine emerging themes in how they've responded to the coronavirus, which highlights the following:

  • widening inequalities and impact on wellbeing
  • developing a common purpose
  • making connectivity and trust count
  • community and place matters
  • daily life
  • clarity of message
  • digital divide
  • financial sustainability
  • what does recovery mean?

Further emerging questions that need to be explored will become clearer as the pandemic evolves and circumstances change.

Simple activities set for participation increase

Sport England commissioned research to understand people’s activity levels and attitudes shows swimming, walking, running and cycling look set for participation increases. 53 per cent of people say they want to walk more, with 20 per cent intending to increase their running, 19 per cent keen on more cycling and 20 per cent saying they want to swim regularly. The research also shows 22 per cent were looking forward to returning to the gym and joining fitness classes outside of their own home. Activity levels initially held up well during lockdown, with people finding new ways to stay active, but as society has begun to reopen in recent weeks, there's been a dip. 

Plight of public swimming pools

Indoor pools across the country were allowed to reopen on 25 July. However, less than 20 per cent of local authority-owned facilities welcomed swimmers back into the water on reopening day; and many of those will be at a reduced capacity.

Swim England research also shows 30 per cent of public pools may remain closed into 2021 due to the exceptional costs councils face to re-open facilities, coupled with the income lost during the lockdown period.

COVID-19: Supporting the vulnerable

COVID-19 has indicated how creativity and culture is supporting shielding and vulnerable people at home based on 50 case studies in England in Wales. We are increasingly seeing the value that creativity brings to people's lives, and the report highlights the valuable role that that cultural and creative organisations play in reaching vulnerable communities, to support creativity and care Almost all of the case studies were undertaken in partnership with local government, health, and/or third sector partners.

Immersive audience journey report

As part of the Audience of the Future programme, this Immersive audience journey report, conducted by Digital Catapult, provides detailed insight into immersive audiences. It explores the concept of 'audiences' when applied to immersive productions in the fields of art, culture, heritage and entertainment.

Learning and support

COVID-19: Culture, Tourism and Sport

You can stay up to date with the work the LGA is doing with regards to culture, tourism and sport by visiting our COVID-19 specific webpages. Here, we provide links to Government guidance, LGA publications, letters to national government and press releases.

LGA councillor workbook: Health in All Policies and COVID-19

Health in All Policies (HiAP) is an approach to working across health determinants to impact on health inequalities and improve wellbeing. It rests on the view that the following factors determine resident’s health and wellbeing, all of which our sectors influence:

  • economic deprivation/unemployment/job quality
  • education and learning/children’s wellbeing
  • autonomy/governance
  • health/physical activity
  • green space/pollution/crime and personal safety
  • close relationships/social capital/giving/volunteering.

The LGA's Councillor workbook: Health in All Policies and COVID-19 is designed to prompt reflection, insight and to identify actions to improve practice and support your work in adapting your approach to population health and the council’s public health resource in the context of COVID-19.

LGA Improvement planning 2020/21

Online events and workshops have been characterising our Improvement offer to councils to address a series of challenges related to tourism, the coastal economy, sport and physical activity and culture. At current, the LGA is currently in conversations with key partners at Arts Council England and Sport England, to map out what our activity for 2020/21 looks like. With improvement activity scheduled to take place from September onwards, both officers and members will have the opportunity to develop and enhance their leadership skills in a post COVID-19 world, where leadership is most critical.  

E-learning modules

For those who already have log in details for the LGA e-learning modules, a reminder that modules are still readily available for you to access. A list of modules you may be interested in exploring are as follows:

You will be able to access a range of courses at any time that suits you.

If you have any problems accessing the courses, please email elearning@lga.gov.uk

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LGA's membership magazine 'first' is received as a hard copy by over 18,000 councillors and 400 chief executives. In a response to demand, we have made it easier to read online by creating a dedicated first magazine website.