Rural Evidence Hub

What is the Rural Evidence Hub?

Rural affairs is one of the four core pillars of the Defra remit. The Department champions the equitable treatment of rural areas and communities in national, regional and local public policies and programmes. This remit is England-wide.

The purpose of the Rural Evidence Hub is to provide an evidence base of high quality information and knowledge about rural England.

The Hub is composed of statistical data and published research documents, in a searchable format and allows Defra to:

  • Identify the needs of rural areas, grounded on clear and compelling evidence, that allows Ministers and staff to develop a clear and cogent case.
  • Develop policies and programmes to meet those needs.
  • Monitor progress in delivery of those needs.
What Information is Available?

The Rural Evidence Hub, (also known as the 'REH' or the 'Hub'), is a project being run by Defra who collects the data from many contributors, including the ONS for Census statistics, CRC for Access to Services data, Home Office for Crime statistics, CACI for household income data, NOMIS for Labour Force Survey (LFS) statistics, amongst others. Defra then applies a rural classification to this data and maps it to standard geographies. This data is then published on the Hub.

Users can find information for specific geographic areas and/or particular statistics and the data can be viewed:

  • In tabular form
  • Mapped in graphical form
  • Downloaded for inclusion in your own documents
Who has Access to the Rural Evidence Hub?

First time users: to sign up to use the Rural Evidence Hub, please email this form (PDF 40KB) to rural.statistics@defra.gsi.gov.uk  

External (Gateway) Users:
Currently only registered external users have access to the Rural Evidence Hub through the GI-Gateway. These include Policy Makers and Deliverers of Rural Policy in the regions. However, as the project develops this user base will increase. Registered external users can access the Hub through this link: Rural Evidence Hub - online

Internal (Defra) Users:
Defra users (those with access to Defra's Intranet) should access the Hub thorough the Intranet link: Internal - Rural Evidence Hub (and then click 'enter the site here' - internal users do not need to register).

Tutorial:
There is also a tutorial guide (PDF 1.97MB).

You can email Defra's Rural Statistics Unit or telephone us on 01904 455251.

Page last modified: 29 August, 2009
Page published: 10 December, 2002