Chapter 1: Introduction - the countryside - the challenge
1.1. The countryside is important to all of us. Town and country are interdependent and the needs of both have to be addressed together. But there are special problems in rural areas which require a direct response and that is the focus of this paper.
1.2. The challenge for rural communities is clear. Basic services in rural areas are overstretched. Farming has been hit hard by change. Development pressures are considerable. The environment has suffered.
1.3. Change in the countryside is nothing new, but, over the last 20 years, the pressures have become acute. Many rural areas are prosperous but elsewhere there is real loss. For example farm incomes having risen steeply in the early 1990s have fallen by 60% in the last five years, as a result of global competition, exchange rates and the effects of BSE. It is a diverse picture in which there is hardship as well as success.
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Long term trends in rural services In rural counties monitored between 1965 and 1990, each year 1 or 2% of small settlements experienced closure of their last general store or food shop, representing a loss for around 15% of rural communities over this period. Between 1991 and 1997 a total of 4000 food shops closed in rural areas. Closures of rural schools increased in the 1970s to reach a peak of 127 in 1983 continuing at around 30 a year up to 1997 and declining to 2 in 1999. Provision of village halls and community centres has increased. The National Federation of Women's Institutes 1999 survey "The Changing Village" showed that 90% of communities now have a hall compared with only 54% in 1950. Rural pubs increased in number in the 1980's but have declined since the early 1990's - with current estimates of 3 closing in each county each year. On transport the picture is mixed. The 1990's surveys of rural parishes showed a 3% decrease between 1991 and 1997 in the number of parishes with a daily bus service, but many new services have been introduced in the last 3 years and community transport has expanded significantly. |
The key challenges include:
1.4. housing and migration
A hundred years ago, the countryside suffered from depopulation as younger families left rural poverty for better opportunity in the cities. Rural areas were seen as in need of new development and diversification. Nowadays, due to in-migration, the population of rural districts is growing twice as fast as the national average. But many of the newcomers are older and wealthier and can outbid rural residents, with their lower than average incomes, in the competition to buy homes. With less social housing available as right to buy has taken effect younger people have less opportunity to find affordable housing. These trends are changing the character of communities in some parts of the country - leading to polarisation and social exclusion. In the Cotswolds District Council area, for example, one third of households have annual incomes below £7,000.
1.5. community strength and services
The community strength of rural England is an important part of the character of the countryside. Many communities are strong, remoteness often fostering self-reliance. But many more could have active parish councils positively seeking out initiatives to meet the needs of local people. Rural services are increasingly difficult to find locally, as village post offices find it harder to keep going, and rural bank branches, pubs and village shops close. Traffic casualties are reducing more slowly on rural than urban roads. Income levels for less well off rural residents are not keeping up with inflation. On the other hand, opportunities for education and training are improving, and very few rural schools are closing. After a period of decline bus services have improved in the last few years. The health of rural residents is as good or better than the national average, in terms of birth weight, incidence of long-term illness and longevity, but there is often difficulty in accessing more specialised hospital services. There is greater access to childcare but provision in rural areas is still patchy. Despite perceptions, the incidence of crime in rural areas is still very much less than in towns and cities.
1.6. economy
The economy in rural areas offers a mixed picture. Employment and self-employment are higher than in urban areas and claimant unemployment is lower. But average earnings are lower and rural jobs are more likely to be casual or seasonal, than jobs in urban areas. The nature of employment is changing, with fewer jobs in primary industries such as farming, and other jobs moving to edge of town locations. Home based working is on the increase. Business health is hard to judge, but three quarters of rural districts have business registration rates below their regional average. Transport difficulties can prevent people competing for jobs. In-migration, on the other hand, is generating new jobs (1.7 full-time jobs for each self employed urban to rural mover). Businesses in rural areas are gaining access to ICT, but more slowly than urban areas, due to delays in providing infrastructure. Farming is in crisis, affecting many related businesses though it accounts for only about 4% of GDP in rural areas. Where market town prosperity is declining, as services and industry are rationalised, this has a consequent effect on the surrounding rural areas.
1.7. countryside environment
The environment is one of the things rural people value most. Agricultural intensification and homogenous development have diluted countryside character, eroding the diversity that makes rural England so special. Too few new houses are built in materials and styles that respect local qualities. The decline in farm and woodland bird populations indicates a wider decline in wildlife and countryside biodiversity, partly as a result of changes in farming practices. Rivers are getting cleaner, but they are suffering from increases in abstraction and modification of watercourses. Air quality in the countryside is improving in most respects, although increasing road and air
1.8. regional variation
It is dangerous to generalise about the countryside, since different areas face different problems. The things that concern those who live in Alton, a market town in Hampshire, will be very different from those of concern in Alston, a market town in Cumbria. The contribution of land based businesses to the economy of the Home Counties is limited and farmers struggle to manage land in the green belts around major cities, where their holdings are fragmented by urban service infrastructure and subject to vandalism. Remote counties such as Shropshire, Lincolnshire and Cumbria suffer more from declining farm incomes. In the south west and along the east coast fishing remains a vital industry. In the remoter areas the local and health authorities find it hard to provide services, such as meals-on-wheels and clinics. Other areas of countryside are suffering from structural change due to coalfield closures. As the Forest of Dean has showed, this type of change can take a generation to tackle. Counties like Durham, Nottinghamshire and South Yorkshire face considerable physical and community decline.
1.9. public concern
Public concern for the countryside remains at a high level. The greatest concern is development. Even so, most people view it as a good place that they would like to move to, mainly because they believe it provides a healthier environment. There is also a very high concern about modern methods of farming. Yet few discriminate in their purchasing of food or travel in a way that would directly sustain the landscapes and biodiversity they value. As an analysis of the 1998 Social Attitudes Survey, Rural spaces and urban jams, has shown, high levels of public concern about the environment co-exist with a deep seated reluctance to support measures to reduce the impact of their own lifestyles on environmental quality.
the countryside - our commitment
1.10. We can and will respond to this challenge. We want to help build prosperous, sustainable and inclusive rural communities. We are addressing the needs of all who live and work in rural areas. We will maintain and improve basic local services. We will help farmers and businesses adapt to change and support new enterprise. We will give local communities the chance to shape their own future.
1.11. People in rural areas want the same opportunities as everyone else: employment opportunities, decent public services, affordable homes, good schools and the ability to enjoy life. Yet they also value the special qualities the countryside provides: a sense of space; of independence; of not living on top of each other. Remoteness makes services expensive to provide and some will never reach every rural dwelling. Those who live in the country accept that as part of rural life.
Diversity and local choice
1.12. We need to give rural communities a fair deal but to do so in a way which does not undermine the qualities that make the countryside special. We need to get the balance right. And so we recognise the diversity and local distinctiveness of the countryside. We do not expect the same approach to work everywhere. This White Paper sets out a toolkit of measures which local communities can apply to meet their priorities and concerns.
Commitment to the countryside
1.13. Government's role is to provide the framework and support within which people can succeed and the flexibility to develop appropriate local solutions. We are making a new commitment to rural communities that sets out what they can expect, what Government will do, and the tools that are available to help them succeed.
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Rural England - what we want to see
1.14. Change will continue. Population change and economic growth, new technology and new patterns of travel, leisure and consumer taste will have as much impact in rural as in urban areas. Our goal is to help people in rural areas to manage change, exploit the opportunities it brings, and enable them to create a more sustainable future.
1.15. Everyone who lives in, works in, uses or cares about the countryside needs to see how they fit into the wider picture and how change and external pressures on rural England have to be directed in a way which benefits the countryside as a whole.
1.16. The role of central and local government is to provide the framework and public services (including infrastructure) for business and individuals to thrive, to deliver macro-economic stability, to raise educational standards, make work pay, assist people with their job search, ensure that the basic services which rural communities need can be provided, and that the environmental regulatory framework can respond to today's pressures and enable everyone to enjoy the benefits which that environment provides.
1.17. In 1999 the Government completed an extensive analysis of the rural policy framework in the PIU study Rural Economies (many of its recommendations are referred to in this report), followed by an Interdepartmental Cross Cutting Review of Rural Policy to inform the Comprehensive Spending Review 2000. This agreed an overall aim to sustain and enhance the distinctive environment, economy and social fabric of the English countryside for the benefit of all and high level objectives to provide a framework for rural and countryside policy:
The Government's Rural Policy Objectives
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Objective 1 To facilitate the development of dynamic, competitive and sustainable economies in the countryside, tackling poverty in rural areas.
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Objective 2 To maintain and stimulate communities, and secure access to services which is equitable in all the circumstances, for those who live or work in the countryside. |
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Objective 3 To conserve and enhance rural landscapes and the diversity and abundance of wildlife (including the habitats on which it depends).
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Objective 4 To increase opportunities for people to get enjoyment from the countryside. To open up public access to mountain, moor, heath and down and registered common land by the end of 2005.
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Objective 5 To promote government responsiveness to rural communities through better working together between central departments, local government, and government agencies and better co-operation with non-government bodies.
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1.18. These objectives build on the policy evaluation set out in the PIU report and will be taken forward in Departmental Public Service Agreement targets and their subsidiary Service Delivery agreements. They underpin the new initiatives to benefit rural communities made possible by the Spending Review 2000 and have informed the approach to rural policy set out in this White Paper.
1.19. In developing this rural policy framework, we have consulted and listened to rural communities. Over 2,000 individuals and rural community groups responded to our consultation document on Rural England published in 1998 and subsequently. They have given us a wide range of views and priorities. Some of these are reflected in the quotations used in this paper taken from interviews with a cross section of rural people in Cumbria, Lincolnshire, Derbyshire, Somerset, Dorset and Buckinghamshire. We have considered the recommendations of the House of Commons Environment Transport and Regional Affairs Select Committee (to which our response is published separately). This White Paper has also been informed by preparatory discussion with a group of rural stakeholders meeting with DETR and MAFF Ministers (The Rural White Paper Sounding Board).
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Rural White Paper Sounding Board The Sounding Board was created as an informal advisory forum to stimulate discussion on key themes for the Rural White Paper and included the following members.
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1.20. Our approach recognises different regional priorities. It is far from that of ‘one size fits all'. Just as the English countryside itself varies dramatically in its landscapes and character, so priorities and issues will vary strongly between and within regions. We have developed an approach within which Government can work with rural partners at all levels, regional, area, and parish, to draw on the most relevant policies, and which gives flexibility and discretion to those partners in developing solutions for their areas.
1.21. For this reason the Government has given the Regional Development Agencies a strong rural focus reflected in Regional Economic Strategies and the Rural Priority Areas. Similarly there is a strong regional focus for the England Rural Development Programme which sets a more collaborative basis for encouraging rural regeneration and environmental improvement, for example through agri-environment schemes, and enterprise in the farming, food, and forestry sectors. Bringing together the full range of countryside issues, the Government has created a specialist adviser The Countryside Agency, to advise it and all public bodies and to research, highlight and pilot best practice on a living, working and accessible countryside. Each of these and their local partners will play a key role in taking foward the policies set out in this White Paper.
the countryside - our vision
1.22. So our vision is of:
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A living countryside, with thriving rural communities and access for all to high quality public services
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A working countryside, with a diverse economy giving high and stable levels of employment
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A protected countryside in which the environment is sustained and enhanced, and which all can enjoy
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A vibrant countryside which can shape its own future and whose voice is heard by Government at all levels
Page last modified:
19 May, 2005
Page published: 28 November, 2000