Chapter 3 IMPROVING RURAL AREAS FOR EVERYONE

Thriving communities in a countryside that all can enjoy

Rural communities can be wonderful places to live and work in and to visit.

3.1 The countryside is very important to all of us as a place to spend some of our leisure. At the same time, rural England is a place where people live, and rural residents have similar concerns about work, education, health and crime as have people in urban areas have.

3.2 DEFRA has a new, specific remit for rural affairs and a Minister to champion rural issues across government. For the first time, we bring together all the strands of rural policy: promoting enterprise and services, tackling deprivation and protecting the countryside and ensuring access to it. From health to education, from transport to jobs, from crime to local democracy, we look at the rural dimension of all government policies.

3.3 The Government set out its programme for rural England in the White Paper Our Countryside, The Future, published in November 2000. DEFRA will contribute to delivering the commitments in that by concentrating on where we can make most difference to the lives of rural people. The Government set out its programme of action for the recovery of the countryside after the foot and mouth disease outbreak in England’s Rural Future in December 2000. Our priorities are in line with the principles of sustainable development that inform all our work. They are: a prosperous rural economy, with work for all who want it; cohesive rural communities, with access to good public and private services; and a countryside whose natural beauty and biodiversity are protected, for their own sake and for the visitors they attract.

Already we have:

• made great strides on implementing the Rural White Paper; and published a report (England’s Rural Future), which shows progress across government on delivering the vision of a living, working, protected and vibrant countryside;

• established the Rural Affairs Forum to provide a voice for those who live and work in the countryside into the heart of government. This builds on the experience of the Rural Task Force, created during the foot and mouth crisis, when many rural organisations worked together;

• responded positively to the reports by the Rural Task Force and Lord Haskins on reviving the rural economy after foot and mouth disease. The Government, working with Regional Development Agencies, set up an £80 million Business Recovery Fund.

• given a regional focus to our strategy for rural areas; with a Rural Director in each regional Government Office, working closely with the regional Rural Affairs Forum, the Regional Development Agency and the Countryside Agency regional office;

• promoted local leadership to help parish and town councils develop a stronger role and give communities more opportunity to run their own affairs;

• worked with partners to improve rural services such as schools, policing, post offices, childcare and public transport; including: 5,000 extra affordable homes in villages between 2000 and 2004; 1,500 villages to benefit from the Countryside Agency’s £15 million Vital Villages Programme;

• put in place programmes to improve the rural economy, including: £37 million towards a £100 million partnership programme to boost the economy of 120 market towns; the £1.6 billion England Rural Development Programme (see paragraph 2.12) to help farmers and other rural businesses and co adapt and develop, and to encourage environmentally responsible farming; mandatory rate relief for small village shops, petrol stations and pubs; support for over 250 farmers’ markets – due to rise to 400; and £32.5 million for small-scale, locally-led rural development under the EU LEADER programme, with 24 successful partnership bids for the £76 million LEADER+ programme to follow.

3.4 Many rural problems are not essentially different from urban ones, so rural policies need to be part of wider governmental policies. That is why it is so important for DEFRA to work closely with other government departments and organisations. However, providing high quality public services is more of a challenge in rural areas for geographical reasons, and national policies may need adapting to take account of particular rural needs. Programmes to address poverty need to allow for the sparser population in rural areas and the way in which poverty exists side-by-side with affluence. For example, Sure Start is designed to give a better start in life to 0–4-year-olds in deprived communities. Its rural programmes offer a model for how a policy can meet its objectives in a distinctive way in rural areas as well as ensuring its clear focus is achieved in urban areas. DEFRA Ministers have worked with the Department for Education and Skills and others to find ways to meet the needs of children in rural areas.

Rural England: what is happening?

Statistics often fail to tell the whole story on rural issues. They may not include figures at very local levels, and the presence of many well-off commuters and retired people can hide pockets of real deprivation. We need to get the true picture so national policies can take account of rural problems. With other providers of statistics, we will develop a database of environmental, economic and social statistics for rural areas, including detailed local data. We must also understand better the specific needs of rural businesses such as skills and infrastructure, so we can work with other departments and business to address these needs.

3.5 Rural economies can be vibrant. A third of our small businesses are in rural areas. Government can support such businesses through business advice and improved training and skills – priorities for the country as a whole. We are working with the Learning and Skills Councils and Regional Development Agencies on the economic challenges faced by rural areas. The Small Business Service has set up a rural issues sub-group. New technology provides scope for innovative ways of delivering government advice and services, and we will work to ensure that rural economies have full access to the benefits of e-government.

What we will do:

• we will ensure that the policies of all parts of government are ‘rural-proofed’ so they take account of the special needs of rural areas; the Countryside Agency will report annually on how this is being done;

• we will continue to work to ensure that people in the countryside have access to high quality public services;

• we will work with the Regional Development Agencies and other partners to strengthen and diversify the rural economy;

• we will strengthen voluntary and community activity that is even more critical to the wellbeing of people living in rural areas than it is in towns;

• we will help to build capacity in rural communities so they can both engage effectively with service providers and develop their self-sufficiency, for example through social enterprise;

• we will focus on the needs of rural children and young people;

• we will continue to deliver the targets set out in the Rural White Paper, working through our agencies or with other departments; and

• we will set public targets for what rural policy should achieve and monitor progress towards these.

A countryside for all to enjoy

3.6 Foot and mouth disease highlighted the importance of countryside recreation for people, wherever they live. With the rights-of way network closed people felt restricted and many did not leave towns and cities to visit the countryside. The fall in visitor numbers caused serious problems for many rural businesses: the costs of the disease to businesses are estimated at about £3 billion.

Already we have:

• launched a major campaign – ‘Your Countryside – You’re Welcome’ – with over 50 partner organisations to encourage visitors to the countryside; and

• provided the biggest increase in funding for National Park Authorities for ten years.

3.7 The Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000 contains powers to provide an improved network of rights of way and introduces new rights of access to over 1 million hectares of open countryside in England and Wales. We have made good progress on implementing this, working mainly with the Countryside Agency and with the help of the National Access Forum, and we aim to have the new rights in place by 2005. Local access forums will give local people a say on better access provision.

3.8 Most countryside recreation is beneficial to the social, economic and environmental well-being of rural areas. Providing facilities for horse-riders is, for instance, a fast-growing rural industry. There are particular environmental values from game shooting, wildfowling, angling and fishing and the Government does not intend to ban these countryside sports.

What we will do:

• We will sponsor research via the Countryside Agency into what people with disabilities, people from ethnic minorities, people from inner cities and young people need to enjoy the countryside.
• We will provide each House of Parlament with an early opportunity to debate hunting, and the Government will consider in the light of these votes and views expressed in those debates how to enable Parliament to reach a conclusion on this issue.
• We will work with the Department for Transport, Local Government and the Regions to ensure that the revision of planning policy guidance on sport, open space and recreation (PPG17) emphasises the importance of open spaces for informal activities in the countryside.
• We will improve access to water for sport and recreation, taking into account research into impacts on wildlife published in December 2001.
• We will safeguard and enhance the countryside around towns, in particular through restoring neglected country parks and promoting community forest projects.
• We will expect National Park Authorities to identify and manage demands for recreation in their areas, not just from those who have traditionally enjoyed the Parks’ special qualities, but from the whole of society. We will report on how successful this has been.
• We will establish a fund to enable National Park Authorities to give grants for sustainable projects to improve the environment, enjoyment and understanding of the Parks, for the benefit of all.

DEFRA’s objectives are:

• To enhance opportunity and tackle social exclusion through promoting sustainable rural areas with a dynamic and inclusive economy, strong rural communities and fair access to services.
• To improve enjoyment of an attractive and well-managed countryside for all.

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