Rural Advocate Report 2010
The Government's Rural Advocate, Dr Stuart Burgess, has gathered evidence from speaking to communities in all parts of rural England about the fears, aspirations, challenges and needs of young people in rural England.
The findings have been published in the Rural Advocate Report 2010 and was presented to the Government on 4th March 2010, with a clear message that the long-term future of the countryside is in jeopardy because so many young people are being forced out of rural areas to find homes, jobs and support.
Below is a summary of the key findings:
Housing
There is a lack of affordable housing in rural areas, both for buying and renting, that is forcing young people out of the countryside and discouraging others to return. Social housing accounts for 13% of the housing in rural areas compared with 22% in urban areas. The Commission for Rural Communities analysis suggests that between 2006 and 2031 demand for new housing will grow by 35% in rural areas compared to 27% in urban areas.
More affordable housing has to be delivered.
Help for parents with young children
A combination of low income and lack of transport leads to some families missing out on primary healthcare (including dentistry) and parenting support. Sure Start Children's Centres provide a one-stop-shop for families with children under the age of 5. Centres in the most deprived areas offer access to family healthcare, advice and support for parents, outreach services, integrated early education and childcare links through to training and employment. There are more than 3,000 Centres in England. Of the 394 in rural areas, 314 are classified as town and fringe. Only 80 are located in villages and hamlets and on average, these have to provide for up to 2,500 children, more than double the average in urban centres. The report recommends greater communication between key departments to encourage full data-sharing as a first step to improving services.
Employment and skills
Traditional barriers to gaining employment in rural areas such as inadequate public transport and less training have been reinforced by the recent recession. Of the 573 Job Centre Plus outlets in England, 80 are located in market towns, but only 23 in more rural areas. Government approved training schemes, largely accessed through Job Centre Plus are not considered to be a viable option in rural areas. At the end of June 2009, 40% of 16-24 year olds in rural areas were unemployed (107,000) or economically inactive (267,000). New ways must be developed to give better access to support for seeking jobs and training. The support infrastructure should be strengthened to reach the smaller numbers of young people in villages and hamlets.
Further education institutions should reach into schools and local communities to breakdown the barriers of fear of the unknown, already being practised by some of the new universities.
Communications
The recent Government initiative to improve access to fast broadband and for rural communities to benefit is welcomed. For children and young people the impact of exclusion to modern communication is felt in two ways. Firstly, there is an expectation that they can access the internet to do their homework. Secondly, the use of mobile phones and social networking has become an integral feature of young people's lives. Lack of broadband access and mobile phone coverage is a factor restricting the growth of rural enterprises. About 60% of urban areas are able to receive a cable-based broadband service compared to just 1.5% in villages and hamlets. The Government's delivery of the Next Generation Access by 2017 must put rural areas at the forefront of targeted delivery. The same should apply to extending mobile phone coverage.
Young carers
There are a significant number of young carers who take on the responsibility of caring for other family members. There are increased costs in rural areas because of accompanying relatives to appointments and a greater likelihood to miss school. Rural areas are less likely to have mutual support networks. Family poverty and low income are key factors to young people becoming carers in the first place. It is thought there are 35,000 carers under the age of 18 and 46,000 young adult carers in rural communities - 2.1% of all children and 5.3% of all 18-24 year olds, there are likely to be more. There should be greater encouragement for schools and young carer projects to work together. Education, social and health services should communicate with the voluntary sector to identify families at risk and consider the needs of the family as a whole, including the young carer.
Energy Efficiency and climate change
Many homes in rural communities are hard to treat (solid walls and off mains
gas) therefore traditional insulation measures cannot be used. Hard to treat homes account for over 50% of carbon emissions from housing. The majority of government policies to tackle fuel poverty and improve efficiency are not reaching rural homes. A SAP (Standard Assessment Procedure for energy
efficiency) rating below 35 is classified as an extremely energy inefficient home. The English Housing Condition Survey of 2006 found that 50% of homes in sparse rural areas have a SAP of below 30 compared to just 8% in urban areas. The Department for Energy and Climate Change should improve access for rural households to government schemes such as the Carbon Emission Reduction Target and Warm Front.
Transport
Integrated transport enables young people to travel from villages to towns to access education, training and jobs. Lack of public transport and greater distances to be travelled makes life difficult for young people and leads to isolation. Children who are dependent on the school bus are denied attending after school activities. Many colleges are out of town and public transport is not necessarily joined-up making the journey slow. 52% of 11-16 year olds in urban areas are car passengers to social and sport activities compared to 70% from villages and hamlets. For journeys on foot, the figures are 22% for urban children compared to 7% of children in villages and hamlets.
Isolation and exclusion
Young people are essential for the sustainability of rural communities. Less than 5% of the 500 government-funded, face-to-face advisers operate in rural areas and none of the 50 local authorities prioritised by the Financial Services Authority's Money Made Clear programme is rural. Support agencies recognise their coverage of rural areas is poor due to the time key workers would need to spend travelling. A decline in jobs in traditional rural industries is leading to depopulation, and upland farmers in particular think it is increasingly less likely that their children will follow in their footsteps. Policymakers at all levels should demonstrate that they have taken account of rural needs and circumstances when arriving at decisions.
The full report, which also highlights some successful rurally aimed projects, can be downloaded from the Commission for Rural Communities website http://www.ruralcommunities.gov.uk/content/ruraladvocatemonthlyreports
