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A Rural Strategy was agreed at the recent AGM of the Rural Services Network. This document calls upon the Government to take the lead to produce a comprehensive, long term and funded Rural Strategy which should set out...
Telford in Shropshire has been found to be England’s biggest fly-tipping hotspots with an average eight incidents per day, according to the Shropshire Star. Last year, £320,000 was spent on clearing up fly-tipped rubbish across Shropshire. One incident in...
To inform and contextualise a local authority area's economic situation, factsheets have been produced for our member authorities providing a wide range of facts, figures and associated graphs. The factsheets provide rural and urban averages, and averages for the classification...
The Banking Standards Board (BSB) has spoken out to say that small businesses suffer the most from the closure of bank branches and that British banks need to work together to mitigate the effects, Reuters reports. Alison Cottrell, chief...
The Bank of England have recently launched a project which is designed to engage the public in a major consultation on the future of money. Called Future Forum, they are inviting people to provide their thoughts on a variety...
Small companies face losing money due to poor broadband connections after research shows more than a quarter of employees find slow internet the most frustrating part of their job. A survey from rural internet provider Whitespace Technology ...
58 per cent of UK adults have said they would not move to the countryside because of poor broadband, according to a new uSwitch report. The website MobileNews explores the findings of the report, noting that concerns over internet...
New analysis from Which? suggests that nearly two thirds of the UK’s bank branches have closed over the past 30 years, the Mirror reports. Parliamentary records show that in 1988 there were 20,583 bank and building society branches across...
An average of 14 high street shops are closing every day, with only 1.569 new shops opening in the period between January and June 2018, an historic low. According to Sky News, the research by PwC and the Local...
The Government has launched a review of a tax loophole under which the owners of second homes register their properties as businesses in order to gain small business rate relief. Coverage, including in the East Anglia Daily Times, highlighted...
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Amid reduced public spending, fair resource allocation across regions is crucial. Despite a population larger than Greater London, rural areas receive significantly less funding for essential services, even though delivering these services in rural areas is more expensive.
Economic growth is widely acknowledged as essential for national wealth and prosperity and is a priority for political parties. Rural economies, employing millions and home to a higher proportion of small businesses, have potential for growth if barriers are removed.
Rural residents face distinct healthcare challenges, including limited access to transport, longer distances to medical facilities, an aging demographic, housing inadequacies, digital connectivity gaps, and difficulties recruiting health and care workers.
Rural communities are grappling with a severe affordable housing crisis, marked by high house prices, a lack of affordable housing, elevated living costs, and lower incomes, threatening their sustainability and vitality.
Transport is vital for the quality of life and economic health of rural areas, yet it faces challenges such as infrequent public bus services and less Government funding compared to urban regions.
Rural areas, encompassing a substantial portion of England's population and land, play a pivotal role in combating climate change and achieving the net zero target.
In an increasingly digital world, the lack of robust digital infrastructure in rural areas severely limits access to crucial services and stifles economic growth.
A future-focused vision for rural communities involves not just building the right homes in the right places but also ensuring thriving, sustainable communities.
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