Table of contents
DOI: https://doi.org/10.58248/HS91
Overview
An estimated 17.5% of the population in England lives in rural areas. The rural population is growing at a slower rate and is aging faster as younger people (17-20) are migrating to urban areas for education and training opportunities.[1] 17% of Scotland’s population is rural. 27% of the population in remote rural areas is over 65 compared to 16% in large urban areas.[2] 32% of the population in Wales live in rural areas, and 25% of these rural residents in 2019 were aged 65 or over.[3],[4] 34% of the population in NI is rural,[5] and approximately a third of these are over 60.[6]
In England, employment in traditional sectors, such as agriculture and forestry, is lower than in sectors such as tourism, manufacturing and retail.[7] Unemployment is lower in rural areas,7 but employment can be precarious, low-paid or seasonal and the centralisation of the welfare system can compound the volatility and irregularity of incomes.[8]
Contributors to the horizon scan noted research showing reductions in rural public services such as transport, education, health, social care and housing are exacerbating these challenges.8 Studies also state low labour and skill availability are creating retention and recruitment challenges for rural employers, exacerbated by the limitation of other services.8,[9]
In 2024, the All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) for Rural Services set out its key priorities for funding across these public services to support rural economic growth and skills development.[10] Contributors also stated that the Index of Multiple Deprivation should be revised to more accurately capture rural deprivation.38
Challenges and opportunities
New rural investment opportunities are emerging, such as funding of nature recovery projects, natural flood management schemes (PN 623), woodland creation (PN 636), agri-environment schemes or renewable energy installations.[11],[12],[13],[14] Contributors to the scan raised concerns that many rural communities perceive these opportunities as externally imposed changes that may increase land prices and change landscapes, having ‘just transition’ impacts on these communities (PN 706).[15],[16],[17],[18]
However, contributors also recognised there were opportunities to ‘stack enterprises’ on farms to realise multiple benefits, such as the recreational opportunities that could be generated from nature based agricultural approaches while providing locally affordable food.[19],[20],[21] To increase their returns from the market, shifting towards shorter supply chains may also be an opportunity for farm businesses, which can be supported with appropriate infrastructure and advice on marketing and communications.[22]
Contributors also noted rural regions, such as Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty and National Parks, need to be vibrant places for residents to live and work but are also subject to pressures from existing areas of economic growth such as tourism.[23],[24],[25]
This may include environmental impacts that could be exacerbated by climate change, such as water scarcity in summer months when visitors increase.[26] Rural economies are vulnerable to climate change in multiple ways, with activities dependent on natural resources, such as forestry and agriculture, which can be disrupted by climate change and extreme weather events, such as wildfires (PN 717) and flooding.[27],[28],[29],[30],[31],[32]
Contributors suggested engaging local communities on the effectiveness and social acceptability of new economic and land use opportunities may build trust, positively impacting on rural well-being. However, this engagement requires measures such as supporting civic activities and providing digital connectivity to build social capital (building social connections within and between groups and individuals).[33],[34],[35],[36],[37]
Digital technology offers significant opportunities for rural areas. However, this will require hard to reach rural areas to be fully connected, as well as capacity building and encouragement of digital inclusion, support for rural enterprises and involving communities in the co-design of digital projects.23,[38]
Contributors suggested realising opportunities for building social capital that will foster growth in rural enterprises would also require a range of measures such as strengthening local business networks and clusters,[39] targeting skills and employment support and addressing infrastructure factors.[40],[41]
For example, housing is considered to be an essential dynamic in the overall social and economic system of rural communities.28,29 This may require the planning system achieving a balance between realising environmental objectives and rural infrastructure and businesses,[42] such as the outcomes of the nutrient management (PN 710) and mandatory biodiversity net gain (PN 728) policies.
Contributors outlined a range of challenges for farming business, including:
- the transition from the basic payment scheme to the new environmental land management schemes (CBP 9431),[43],[44] alongside increases in the cost of key inputs such as diesel, oil, fertiliser and pesticides[45]
- incentivising uptake of training to develop relevant skills, labour availability and seasonal labour policies (PN 707)
- the agricultural occupancy planning condition for farm dwellings limiting diversification[46]
- pay conditions for some farmers, including short-term tenancy conditions that favour the landowner[47]
- developing cooperative structures for smaller farming businesses
More recently, concerns have been raised about the potential impact on farming of the 2024 budget changes to inheritance tax.[48]
In 2023, the House of Commons Environment Food and Rural Affairs Select Committee stated that NHS services are often not fairly accessible for rural communities, with services largely centred in towns and cities creating barriers to access, compounded by the limitations and weaknesses of public transport and digital connectivity. The committee stated that improving the mental health and well-being of those within the farming and agricultural veterinary sectors should be a priority.[49]
Contributors suggested one acute stressor for farmer’s mental health is agricultural crime,[50],[51] such as livestock theft and worrying.[52] Rural communities perceive that they don’t receive the same level of police and forensic services as urban communities,[53] and that criminal justice system penalties do not reflect the intricacies of rural crime and the impact these offences have on victims, despite evidence it is becoming increasingly organised.[54] This includes cyber and cyber-enabled criminal activity, with contributors stating rural cyber security is often overlooked, but that risks will continue to rise with an ageing population and an increase in the roll-out of stable internet provision in rural areas.[55],[56]
Key uncertainties/unknowns
- Rural communities have differing needs and challenges. For example, some rural communities are characterised by wealthier older inhabitants, with younger people unable to afford housing, while others such as ex-mining villages may have poor housing stock and less wealthy inhabitants.29
- The complexity for farming businesses in accessing funding, coupled with trade uncertainty, and the uncertainty of private and public funding for agri-environmental and nature recovery measures. For example, public funding for agri-environment measures, as the Environmental Land Management scheme may be subject to conditions that cannot be met by tenant farmers (who manage one third of farmland in England[57]). Designing these schemes so that there is a greater alignment between the length of the contracts and the terms of the tenancy agreement have been suggested to increase their attractiveness to farmers and landowners.[58],37,[59],[60]
Key questions for Parliament
- What government strategies are required to deliver an integrated approach that addresses the entwined challenges of rural daily life, such as rural transport, enterprise, digital connectivity, housing, education, policing and health?
- How can local communities be engaged in the changes to economic and environmental land management activities that create ‘just transition’ issues (PN 706) and address resulting pressures and impacts that may emerge?
- What support is needed to realise economic growth in rural enterprises, including addressing skills, labour and infrastructure factors?
Relevant Documents
House of Commons Library, Equipment Theft (Prevention) Bill Research Briefing
House of Library, Fact file: Rural economy, In Focus
House of Commons Library, Levelling Up Rural Britain, cdp-2022-0193
House of Commons Library, Farm funding: implementing new approaches
House of Lords Library, Health care in rural areas, In Focus
House of Commons Library, Rural housing: A reading list, Research Briefing
What is a just transition for environmental targets? POSTnote 706
The future of fertiliser use, POSTnote 710
Biodiversity net gain, POSTnote 728
Future of Horticulture, POSTnote 707
Natural mitigation of flood risk, POSTnote 623
Woodland creation, POSTnote 636
References
[1] Defra. (2024). Official Statistics Key Findings, Statistical Digest of Rural England
[2] Scottish Government. (2023). Rural Scotland Data Dashboard: Overview
[3] Woods, M., et al. (2021). A Rural Vision for Wales: The Evidence Report. Aberystwyth University
[4] Woods, M. (2023). Rural Youth Out-Migration and Population Change in Wales. Wales Centre for Public Policy
[5] Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency. (2015). Urban – Rural Classification
[6] Evason, E., et al. (2004). Older People in Northern Ireland: Report 1: Setting the scene. Institute of Governance, Public Policy and Social Research Queen’s University Belfast
[7] Defra and Government Statistical Service. (2024). Statistical Digest of Rural England: 7 – Rural Economic Bulletin
[8] Shucksmith, M. et al. (2021). Rural Lives Understanding financial hardship and vulnerability in rural areas
[9] NICRE. (2024). Labour and skills availability: impacts on rural enterprise. National Innovation Centre for Rural Enterprise, State of Rural Enterprise Report No 7
[10] Rural Services Network. (2024). Inaugural Meeting of the APPG for Rural Services: A Promising Start for Rural Communities
[11] Rewilding Britain. (2021). Rewilding and the rural economy. How Nature-Based Economies can help boost and sustain local communities.
[12] Raderschall, L., et al. (2022). Rural areas to the rescue: how rural renewables are driving the green transition. OECD
[13] Clausen, L., et al. (2020). Renewable energy for sustainable rural development: Synergies and mismatches. Energy Policy, Volume 138, 111289
[14] Centre for Rural Economy. (2023). Investing in ecosystem service markets for landscape-scale environmental regeneration: Opportunities and challenges for Landscape Enterprise Networks. Newcastle University
[15] John Muir Trust. (2022). Rise of the Green Lairds
[16] Dempsey, B. (2023). ‘Bridging the divide: rewilding, farming and the triple challenge’. WWF-UK, Woking
[17] Duarte, R., et al. (2022). Analysing citizens’ perceptions of renewable energies in rural areas: A case study on wind farms in Spain. Energy Reports, Volume 8, Pages 12822-12831
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[19] Food, Farming and Countryside Commission. (2021). Stacking enterprises on one farm
[20] Thompson, J. (2022). Stack it up: One farm, five farmers? Wicked Leeks, Food, Farming and Fairness.
[21] Abram, M. (2023). Downsizing and enterprise stacking makes Kent farm financially resilient. FWI
[22] NICRE. (2024). Farm business performance, marketing and adaptation strategies, National Innovation Centre for Rural Enterprise, State of Rural Enterprise Report No 8.
[23] CLA. (2023). A strategy for rural tourism
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[25] Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee. (2017). Rural tourism in England
[26] Hunter, K. et al. (2023). Research brief: Climate resilience of water supply on the Isle of Barra. University of Strathclyde, Glasgow
[27] Mittenzwei, K. et al. (2023). Perceived effects of climate policy on rural areas and agriculture: A rural-urban-divide. Journal of Rural Studies Volume 100, 103001
[28] Dasgupta, P. et al. (2014). Rural Areas. In Climate Change 2014: Impacts, Adaptation, and Vulnerability. Part A: Global and Sectoral Aspects. Contribution of Working Group II to the Fifth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.
[29] Rising, J., et al. (2022) What will climate change cost the UK? Risks, impacts and mitigation for the net zero transition. London: Grantham Research Institute on Climate Change and the Environment, London School of Economics and Political Science.
[30] UK Health Security Agency. (2023). Health Effects of Climate Change (HECC) in the UK: 2023 report. Chapter 9. Climate change and food supply
[31] Edmonds, N., et al. (2023). Section P6.5 Rural areas. IN: Climate Change in Wales: Health Impact Assessment. Public Health Wales NHS Trust.
[32] Wheeler, R., et al. (2021). Managing extreme weather and climate change in UK agriculture: Impacts, attitudes and action among farmers and stakeholders. Climate Risk Management, Volume 32, 100313
[33] CRE. (2023). Rural Policy Revisited: Key messages for future sustainable communities, enterprise and land use. Centre for Rural Economy, Newcastle University.
[34] Kemmett, D., et al. (2023). Digital connection is a human right: what role can rural village halls play? Centre for Rural Economy, Newcastle University.
[35] Fitzpatrick, E., et al. (2023). Social capital and rural development: an introduction to the special issue. The Annals of Regional Science, Volume 70, pg. 603–609
[36] Arriola, K., et al. (2024). Understanding the relationship between social capital, health, and well-being in a southern rural population. The Journal of Rural Health, Volume 40, Issue 1
[37] Xu, H., et al. (2023). Social trust, social capital, and subjective well-being of rural residents: micro-empirical evidence based on the Chinese General Social Survey (CGSS). Humanities and Social Sciences Communications volume 10, Article number: 49
[38] Wishart, M. et al. (2021). Digital adoption in rural SMEs. National Innovation Centre for Rural Enterprise
[39] Merrell, I. (2023). Supporting the growth of innovative rural businesses through Rural Enterprise Hubs. Centre for Rural Economy, Newcastle University.
[40] NICRE. (2022). Infrastructure and networks: rural enterprises and the Levelling Up agenda. National Innovation Centre for Rural Enterprise, State of Rural Enterprise Report No.2
[41] NICRE. (2024). The rural economy post-pandemic: opportunities and barriers for business growth. National Innovation Centre for Rural Enterprise, State of Rural Enterprise Report No 6
[42] Lowe, P. et al. (1998). Moralizing The Environment. Countryside change, farming and pollution. Routledge Press
[43] House of Commons Committee of Public Accounts. (2023). Environmental Land Management Scheme, Thirty-First Report of Session 2021–22
[44] House of Lords Library. (2024). Environmental land management: Recent changes to the sustainable farming incentive and countryside stewardship schemes.
[45] AHDB. (2024). Farm input costs have risen sharply over past five years
[46] Shelter. (2023). Agricultural occupancy.
[47] Channel payments for ecosystem services. (2021). The Project
[48] House of Lords Library. (2024) Budget 2024: Inheritance tax and family farms
[49] House of Commons Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee. (2023). Rural Mental Health. Fourth Report of Session 2022–23
[50] Smith, K. (2020). Desolation in the countryside: How agricultural crime impacts the mental health of British farmers. Journal of Rural Studies, Volume 80, Pages 522-531
[51] Smith, K. (2022). Piling on the pressure: Crime and stress in British farming. International Journal of Rural Criminology, Vol 6, 2
[52] National Rural Crime Network
[53] Smith, K. (2019). The emergence of ungoverned space in the British countryside. UTS ePress, Vol 9 No 2 (2019): Rural Crime (special issue)
[54] NFU Mutual (2023). Rural crime soaring as organised gangs target farms
[55] National Cyber Security Centre. (2020). Cyber security for farmers
[56] Bernik, I., et al. (2022). Country Life in the Digital Era: Comparison of Technology Use and Cybercrime Victimization between Residents of Rural and Urban Environments in Slovenia. Sustainability, 14(21), 14487
[57] Defra. (2024). Supporting the tenanted sector in England
[58] Defra. (2023). Independent report. The Rock Review: summary and recommendations
[59] Franks, J. et al. (2007). Environmental co-operatives as instruments for delivering across-farm environmental and rural policy objectives: Lessons for the UK. Journal of Rural Studies Volume 23, Issue 4, Pages 472-489
[60] Marsden, T., et al. (2008). Rural development and the regional state: Denying multifunctional agriculture in the UK. Journal of Rural Studies, Volume 24, Issue 4, Pages 422-431
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