§ Mr. HoyleTo ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what steps he is taking to extend access to theatres for people living in rural areas. [105042]
§ Mr. Alan HowarthThe Arts Council of England aims to increase access to theatres for people living in rural areas by continuing to fund the touring activities of our arts organisations. Significantly, the Arts Council will be announcing later this year details of the National Touring Programme, a new Lottery scheme. This Programme, which has initially been allocated £10 million over two years, will fund new and existing touring by supporting the distribution of work from across a broad range of arts disciplines and scales to audiences throughout England.
In addition, the New Audiences Fund is supporting over 100 projects with an annual budget of £5 million. The projects supported include those which aim to deliver more arts events and activities to more people throughout the country, primarily by extending existing 'tours' to increase their geographical reach and by exploring new methods and means of distribution. A selection of projects will also promote broader access by addressing practical barriers to attendance in rural areas, including transport.