A new project aims to highlight how rural services can be sustained by local residents – and how local people can shape rural policy.

The project is being led by the charity Action with Communities in Rural England.

Called, Sustaining rural services and infrastructure, it aims to identify key issues in the delivery of rural services and infrastructure across Europe.

The initiative is one of six rural-based projects that will gather evidence from a number of countries across Europe.

Information collected, including a set of case studies, will feed into a report to be presented at the 3rd European Rural Parliament in the Netherlands in October 2017.

A different country is leading each of the six projects which are:

* Provision for young people in rural areas, and preparing for a European Rural Youth Parliament
* Welcoming refugees and economic migrants in rural areas
* Tackling poverty and social exclusion in rural areas
* Sustaining rural services and infrastructure
* Strengthening local and sub regional economies
* Integrated rural development, and promotion of LEADER and Community-Led Local

The idea of establishing national rural parliaments started in Sweden in the 1990s and the European Rural Parliament was launched in 2013.

The national rural parliament movement is growing with the Scottish Rural Parliament holding its 2nd gathering in October 2016 and Slovakia in November 2016.

More rural parliaments are planned in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Estonia, Finland, Latvia and Slovenia in the lead up to the October 2017 European Rural Parliament.

The European Rural Parliament is jointly co-ordinated by three European rural networks.

The three networks are the Europe Rural Community Alliance (ERCA), Prepare Partnership for Rural Europe and European LEADER Association for Rural Development.

ACRE is a full member of ERCA.