Reminder to Housing Associations, Local Authorities or organisations that work with housing and homelessness - please take part in this important survey to help us understand and tackle the hidden issue of rural homelessness.

RURAL HOMELESSNESS is an unseen crisis in the countryside, driven by limited access to services and an absence of affordable homes.

The extent of the crisis is unclear as limited rural data is captured in official statistics.

Trends show that overall homelessness has increased in the last decade and where interventions have helped in urban areas, their impact is less successful in rural communities.

A rural housing task force, which includes the Rural Services Network, has joined forces to shine a light on the crisis by commissioning a 12-month research collaboration between academics at Kent and Southampton Universities. 

The rural task force includes leading national, rural charities and housing providers. Working collaboratively, the group have pooled resources to develop and fund the research, designed to secure evidence showing the extent of the rural housing crisis and what interventions will help tackle the problem.  

Working with the researchers, the group will develop and share a series of recommendations to inform government ministers and future policy making. Existing research has largely focused on urban homelessness due to its inherent visibility, yet it has neglected a growing crisis facing rural areas. This lack of exposure has meant it hasn’t received the attention and investment it deserves from policymakers.

 TAKE PART IN THE SURVEY! Are you a housing association, local authority or organisation that works with housing & homelessness? Click here to take part in this important survey to help us understand & tackle the hidden issue of rural homelessness. Please share with your networks! 

- You can read more about the research here

- Watch an accompanying video below: