The Church Commissioners have indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

The Government is committed to tackling poverty and recognises that good work is one of the most effective ways to reduce the risk of poverty. Supporting people to move into work, remain in work and increase their earnings is therefore central to our approach. No assessment has been made of the impact of employment support measures on poverty levels at constituency or county level.

Through the Get Britain Working programme, we are reforming employment, health and skills support to help people overcome barriers to employment, move into good work and progress in their careers. We are also transforming employment support through the Jobs and Careers Service, providing more personalised support tailored to individual circumstances and local labour market needs.

In addition, the Pathways to Work Guarantee will provide tailored employment support for people with health conditions, while the Youth Guarantee will ensure that every young person aged 16 to 24 has access to the support and opportunities they need to get into work or education. Over the next three years, the Government will invest £2.5 billion to help young people build skills, gain experience and progress into employment or further learning. This investment will support almost one million young people and unlock up to 500,000 jobs, training and learning opportunities.

DWP works closely with local partners, including Local Authorities, to help people identify their needs, skills and career goals. We actively work with Staffordshire County Council, colleges and training providers to connect people with opportunities such as apprenticeships, Skills Bootcamps, vacancies and DWP Sector-based Work Academy Programmes.

DWP also broker work experience placements with a range of local employers for people to access and develop their readiness for the world of work.

In Newcastle-under-Lyme, people can access DWP-funded programmes delivered through local authorities, including Connect to Work. This programme is delivered by Newcastle-under-Lyme Borough Council, the Growth Company and local voluntary organisations. It offers personalised support to help people overcome barriers to work, build skills and confidence, and move into jobs, training or further opportunities.

In April 2026, Staffordshire received £2.3 million from the Future Ready Fund. This three-year programme, delivered by the Stoke-on-Trent and Staffordshire Careers Hub, will help more than 375 people. It will offer work experience, opportunities to meet employers, and careers advice to support them into education, training, or employment.

The County Council has also published its Skills for Growth Plan. This includes a £150 million programme to improve skills and training across Staffordshire. So far, £40 million has been secured, and a further £110 million is being sought to increase education and training opportunities for people aged 16 and over, improve careers support, and help more people move into work.

Ambulance response times are published monthly for each of the 11 ambulance trusts in England and are available at the following link:

https://www.england.nhs.uk/statistics/statistical-work-areas/ambulance-quality-indicators/ambulance-quality-indicators-data-2026-27/

Decisions on local recruitment and employment are a matter for individual National Health Service trusts, to ensure they have the right number of staff in place, with the right skill mix, to deliver safe and effective care. Our upcoming 10 Year Workforce Plan will set out the action we will take at national level to create a workforce ready to deliver the transformed service set out in the 10-Year Health Plan.

The UK has a world-class jazz scene, and the Government is committed to supporting its continued growth. In 2026, Arts Council England awarded £37,000 to the Creative Peaks Festival.

Individuals and organisations can access further support through ACE schemes such as National Lottery Project Grants and National Portfolio funding for key sector bodies.

The Government has recently published Turn It Up: Our Plan for Music, which sets out targeted government and industry action across ten areas to create the best conditions for our musical talent, entrepreneurs and businesses, including festivals, to succeed. As part of this, jazz and other music festivals are eligible for investment through the £45 million Music Growth Package programmes and we encourage organisers to apply for these funds.

Improving access to music education for children across England remains a priority, including in Newcastle-under-Lyme and Staffordshire. The Government is actively breaking down barriers through several national initiatives.

The Music Hubs Programme, supported by £76 million for 2026/27, delivers expert tuition and instrument access across England. The £5.85 million Music Opportunities Pilot backed by DfE, Arts Council England and Youth Music offers free lessons to disadvantaged students and those with SEND.

Through the £12.5 million “Music in Libraries” initiative, as part of the Dormant Assets funded ‘Every Child Can’ programme, we will extend provision and increase participation by disadvantaged young people in music enrichment opportunities in public libraries.

DCMS is monitoring macro-economic conditions to understand impacts on relevant sectors, particularly the impact of the conflict in the Middle East and broader cost of living pressures. However, we have not specifically made an assessment of impacts in a) Newcastle-under-Lyme and b) Staffordshire.

DCMS continues to develop place-based policies to support local creative industries. The Government recognises the importance of arts and culture to national life, economic growth, and opportunity. The Government supports arts and culture via the Arts Council England (ACE). ACE has provided funding from 2023-27 for Newcastle-under-Lyme of £1,496,274 and for the wider Staffordshire area of £6,450,334 for the same period.

With around one million young people not in education, employment and training, this Government will not leave an entire generation of young people behind. The Government is investing an additional £2.5 billion by 2029 into the Youth Guarantee and the Growth and Skills Levy.

This investment will support almost one million young people and create up to 500,000 opportunities to earn and learn, including through expanded network of Youth Hubs, earlier intensive support in Jobs Centres through a new Youth Guarantee Gateway, additional work experience and training opportunities, a £3,000 Youth Jobs Grant and £2,000 apprenticeship hiring payment for employers, and a fully funded six month job for long-term unemployed 18–24-year-olds.

In Newcastle-under-Lyme, young people can access DWP-funded programmes delivered through local authorities, including Connect to Work. This programme is delivered by Newcastle-under-Lyme Borough Council, the Growth Company and local voluntary organisations. It offers personalised support to help people overcome barriers to work, build skills and confidence, and move into jobs, training or further opportunities.

The Government is expanding the Youth Hub network to more than 360 locations across Great Britain by 2029, ensuring every young person, including those not receiving benefits, can access high-quality, joined-up support in their local area.

Newcastle-under-Lyme is scheduled to receive a Youth Hub in Year 2 of the expansion programme (2027/28). South and East Staffordshire are due to receive a Youth Hub in Year 2 (2027/28), while Staffordshire Moorlands is scheduled to receive a Youth Hub in Year 3 (2028/29).

The Government is committed to ensuring that everyone, across the country, should have access to and benefit from quality sport and physical activity opportunities, including cycling.

We provide the majority of support for grassroots sport through our arm’s length body, Sport England. The constituency of Newcastle-under-Lyme has received a total of £59,241 of Sport England funding in 2025/2026. Staffordshire has received over £1.1 million of Sport England funding in 2025/2026.

Sport England has provided over £33 million of funding to the National Governing Body for cycling, British Cycling, for the period 2022-2029 to invest in grassroots cycling initiatives.

With less than one year remaining until the Grand Départs arrive in Great Britain for the first time, there is a significant opportunity to inspire participation in cycling. That is why as a Government we’re investing £32 million to not just deliver these iconic races, but also to support the new JOY social impact programme to ensure a lasting legacy from the event.

The Environment Agency works with Staffordshire County Council to reduce flood risk. In Newcastle-under-Lyme, the town centre is protected by flood defences and covered by two flood warning areas. Across Staffordshire, flood defences help protect major urban areas including Burton, Tamworth, Cannock and Stafford. Smaller communities, including Sandon Road in Stafford and Marchington, have benefited from property flood resilience measures. Further work is being developed in areas including Tamworth and Rolleston, supported by the county’s extensive flood warning system.

The Government is committed to ensuring that everyone, across the country, should have access to and benefit from quality sport and physical activity opportunities, including cycling.

We provide the majority of support for grassroots sport through our arm’s length body, Sport England. The constituency of Newcastle-under-Lyme has received a total of £59,241 of Sport England funding in 2025/2026. Staffordshire has received over £1.1 million of Sport England funding in 2025/2026.

Sport England has provided over £33 million of funding to the National Governing Body for cycling, British Cycling, for the period 2022-2029 to invest in grassroots cycling initiatives.

With less than one year remaining until the Grand Départs arrive in Great Britain for the first time, there is a significant opportunity to inspire participation in cycling. That is why as a Government we’re investing £32 million to not just deliver these iconic races, but also to support the new JOY social impact programme to ensure a lasting legacy from the event.

The Government has provided funding to support local government reorganisation, including £7.6 million to support the development of proposals and £63 million in transition funding for councils across the 21 reorganisation areas. As part of the recently announced pause, we will consider council costs and how to support areas through the next stage of the process.

In addition to the non-financial benefits of reorganisation, experience from previous local government reorganisations shows that, while there are upfront implementation costs, unitary councils can be more efficient, reduce duplication and deliver savings over time. For example, North Yorkshire Council has reported around £90 million of savings since its establishment in April 2023.

Local authorities have powers to investigate and take enforcement action against offenders, including issuing fixed penalty notices of up to £5,000 (up from £1000 since 1^st September) and prosecuting those responsible. In February Defra published best practice guidance and case studies to support councils to use their power to seize vehicles suspected of fly-tipping. The Government has secured powers in the Crime and Policing Act 2026 to issue statutory guidance to councils on their fly-tipping enforcement powers.

The Severe Conditions Criteria (SCC) are used to identify and apply to people with the most severe, lifelong health conditions or disabilities, who are unlikely to improve, who are not expected to ever be able to work, and for whom reassessments are unlikely to provide further new information.

Rather than being defined through a list of specific medical conditions, the SCC are considered as part of the Work Capability Assessment. This gives individuals the best opportunity to share with us the most up-to-date information about the functional impacts of their condition.

From 6 April 2026, most claimants who declare a health condition or disability and are found to have LCWRA receive the lower rate of £217.26 per month. This rate is frozen until 2029/30. Those who meet the SCC or the Special Rules for End of Life will receive the higher LCWRA rate of £429.80 per month, no matter when they start claiming the benefit – supporting customers in Newcastle-under-Lyme, Staffordshire, and nationwide.

Water companies produce 25-year Water Resources Management Plans and Drought Plans every five years. The water companies review their plans annually. This is monitored by the Environment Agency and Ofwat to ensure secure, resilient water supplies and drought preparedness.

Water companies produce 25-year Water Resources Management Plans and Drought Plans every five years. The water companies review their plans annually. This is monitored by the Environment Agency and Ofwat to ensure secure, resilient water supplies and drought preparedness.

Disabled people and people with health conditions are a diverse group so access to the right work and health support, in the right place, at the right time, is key. In the Newcastle-under-Lyme constituency, we have a range of specialist initiatives to support individuals to stay in work and get back into work, including those that join up employment and health systems such as Employment Advice in Talking Therapies programme, which combines the expertise of therapists and employment advisers to give those with mental health conditions the support they need to find work tailored to them.

Measures also include support from Work Coaches and Disability Employment Advisers (DEAs) in the Newcastle-under-Lyme Jobcentre and Access to Work grants. Our Work Coaches in the constituency collaborate closely with DEAs to ensure a coordinated package of support. Together, they connect customers with suitable opportunities, including work experience placements and vacancies with Disability Confident employers. For those who are job-ready, we offer a weekly Job Club within the Jobcentre, supported by our Health Team, DEAs, and local partners such as Support Staffordshire.

Our national, voluntary Supported Employment Programme, Connect to Work, is supporting disabled people, people with health conditions and people with complex barriers to employment across England and Wales. In the Newcastle-under-Lyme constituency, Connect to Work is being delivered through Staffordshire County Council, working in partnership with Stoke on Trent City Council. Staffordshire County Council has been awarded grant funding of up to £19 million, to support around 5,250 people by March 2030.

Staffordshire Commissioner for Police, Fire and Crime has engaged with Ministers through the Ministerial Advisory Group on Fire and Rescue Reform (MAGFRR) established in December 2024, as part of its commitment to work formally with all stakeholders across the fire and rescue sector.

The Staffordshire Commissioner wrote to Ministers seeking updated information on the Protection Uplift Grant which supports fire safety in May 2026, and a Ministerial response was provided.

Fire and rescue services have been responding to an exceptionally challenging period of wildfire activity, with multiple significant incidents being managed simultaneously across England and Wales.

The Government has allocated £5.4m of capital and revenue funding for Staffordshire over the next 4 years to promote walking and cycling. This funding allows the County Council to build high-quality infrastructure and fund behaviour change activities such as cycle training.

This is part of the £320 million Integrated Transport Fund that was provided to Staffordshire County Council through a flexible pot that can be used in line with local priorities including walking and cycling. Previous rounds of capital funding have been used to construct pedestrian and cycle improvements on Barracks Road, Hassell Street and Pool Dam in Newcastle-under-Lyme.

The Department is working across government to support the creation of jobs in Newcastle-under-Lyme, Staffordshire, and across the UK by supporting businesses to start, scale, export and attract investment.

Through our modern Industrial Strategy, we are supporting growth in key sectors with strong potential for high-quality job creation, helping to unlock private investment, strengthen regional growth. Alongside this, the Small Business Plan launched in July 2025 is delivering 200 measures to help businesses start, scale and grow. Local businesses can also access free, impartial support through Staffordshire's Growth Hub, helping them identify opportunities to grow and invest.