The Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) has announced a range of initiatives to promote live music in the UK.

Plans include a £500,000 grant to set up new rehearsal spaces, as well as a range of initiatives to improve the licensing system for live music venues.

The initiatives will be based on recommendations by the Live Music Forum, which earlier this year completed a report on the state of the UK’s live music sector.

The recommendations which the DCMS will take forward include exploring an exemption to help small venues – such as restaurants, cafës and community halls – whose main business is not live music.

The government will also enter discussions with London mayor Ken Livingstone to see what can be done to ensure key music venues are not closed down in the capital.

A survey of secondary music venues (those whose main business is not to stage live music) published this week shows that there has been a five per cent drop in those venues staging live performances.

Culture secretary James Purnell said: “I want to do everything we can to support live music.

“To help ensure that, we will explore exemptions for some venues and setting up a pilot network of affordable, professionally equipped community rehearsal spaces.”