Research found that the unemployment rate for people aged 18-24 in rural areas is more than double that for older workers; that the suicide rate between 1998 and 2000 was higher among people aged 16-24 in remote rural areas than in either accessible rural or urban areas; that 18 per cent of people in rural areas live in low-income households compared to 24 per cent in urban areas; and that the same number of pensioners (one in four) in rural areas live below the low-income threshold as in urban areas.
Source: Andrew Harrop and Guy Palmer, Indicators of Poverty & Social Exclusion in Rural England 2002, Countryside Agency (0870 120 6466)
Links: Report (pdf) | Summary | Press release
See also: Journal of Social Policy Volume 30/4, Digest 120, paragraph 1.1
Date: 2002-Dec
A report aimed to provide a greater understanding of the economic value of different types of undeveloped land, including benefits such as recreation, landscape, ecology, cultural heritage, hydrology, air quality and climate, tranquillity, accessibility and soil.
Source: Valuing the External Benefits of Undeveloped Land, Office of the Deputy Prime Minister (020 7944 3000)
Links: Report (pdf)
Date: 2002-Dec
Rural campaigners highlighted ways in which poor and non-existent enforcement of planning controls damages the environment and people s quality of life, and undermines public faith in the planning system.
Source: Enforcement: Quality Control in Planning, Council for the Protection of Rural England (020 7981 2800)
Links: Briefing (pdf)
Date: 2002-Dec
A Bill to reform the planning system was given a second reading. The government said: 'Better consultation will be at the heart of a more streamlined, certain and flexible system'. Rural campaigners called the Bill 'an unacceptable and unworkable centralisation of strategic planning'.
Source: Planning and Compulsory Purchase Bill, Office of the Deputy Prime Minister, TSO (0870 600 5522) | House of Commons Hansard, Debate 17.12.02, columns 729-815, TSO | Press release 4.12.02, Campaign to Protect Rural England (020 7981 2800)
Links: Text of Bill | Hansard | CPRE press release | LGA press release
Date: 2002-Dec
The Welsh Assembly Government launched a strategy for supporting rural communities in Wales.
Source: Rural Community Action: Strengthening living and working in rural Wales, Welsh Assembly Government (029 2082 5111)
Links: Report (pdf) | Press release
Date: 2002-Dec
A compromise Bill on hunting, which would allow foxhunting with hounds to continue in some areas, was given a second reading.
Source: Hunting Bill 2002, Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, TSO (0870 600 5522) | House of Commons Hansard, Debate 16.12.02, columns 570-664, TSO
Links: Text of Bill | Hansard | DEFRA press release
Date: 2002-Dec
The government's 'bureaucratic and formalistic' procedures during the 2001 foot-and-mouth crisis caused trauma in rural communities, a European Parliament report said.
Source: Foot and Mouth Disease: Lessons to be learned from the 2001 crisis and proposals for the future, Temporary Committee on Foot and Mouth Disease, European Parliament (020 7227 4300)
Links: Report (pdf) | European Parliament resolution
Date: 2002-Dec
A study assessed the nature, process and impact of community involvement in rural partnerships in different regional contexts, and identified six components of good practice to enhance the long-term sustainability of such involvement.
Source: Stephen Osborne, Rona Beattie and Arthur Williamson, Community Involvement in Rural Regeneration Partnerships in the UK: Evidence from England, Northern Ireland and Scotland, Policy Press for Joseph Rowntree Foundation, available from Marston Book Services (01235 465500)
Links: JRF Findings N12
Date: 2002-Nov
The provisions in the Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000, which require local authorities to prepare improvement plans, came into effect on 21 November 2002. The government published guidance for local highway authorities in planning to improve their networks of footpaths, bridleways and other public rights of way.
Source: Rights of Way Improvement Plans: Statutory Guidance to Local Highway Authorities in England, Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (08459 556000)
Links: Guidance (pdf) | DEFRA press release | Text of Act
See also: Journal of Social Policy Volume 30/3, Digest 119, paragraph 4.7
Date: 2002-Nov
A study in Scotland found that successful youth projects are often the result of young people themselves being involved in all stages of the project.
Source: Emily Bain, Social Inclusion in Rural Areas: Innovative Projects for Young People, Scottish Executive (0131 244 7560)
Links: Summary
Date: 2002-Oct
Campaigners said that government, both local and national, is still failing to prevent unnecessary and damaging housing sprawl, and that the right balance between brownfield and greenfield land use has not yet been struck.
Source: The Urban Summit: A CPRE Briefing, Council for the Protection of Rural England (020 7981 2800)
Links: Report (pdf)
Date: 2002-Oct
The Countryside Alliance organised a mass demonstration in London against the decline of rural society and the impact of government policies on farming and the rural way of life (including foxhunting). The government said the Alliance's agenda is already reflected in government policies and priorities, and called on the Alliance to work with the government and other organisations to help rural communities and avoid creating divisions in the countryside.
Source: The Guardian, 23.9.02 | Press release 23.9.02, Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (020 7238 6000)
Links: Guardian report | DEFRA press release
Date: 2002-Sep
A report said that young women living in rural areas faced poverty, isolation and limited education and job opportunities, but were being overlooked in the current countryside debate.
Source: Beyond the Bus Shelter: Young women's choices and challenges in rural areas, Young Women's Christian Association (01865 304215)
Links: YWCA press release
See also: Journal of Social Policy Volume 31/1, Digest 121, paragraph 4.7
Date: 2002-Aug
A report called for a strategy to support voluntary groups in rural communities.
Source: Holly Yates, Supporting Rural Voluntary Action, National Council for Voluntary Organisations (0800 279 8798) and Countryside Agency
Links: Summary
See also: Journal of Social Policy Volume 30/4, Digest 120 (paragraph 1.1)
Date: 2002-May