Rural Services Network Chief Executive Kerry Booth was delighted to be invited to speak at the Chartered Institute of Housing Conference South West last week.  A busy two days of sessions meant that there were plenty of key points from the discussion to help inform housing work moving forward.

An interesting session on how we talk about homes focused on a Frameworks UK toolkit, produced in partnership with the Joseph Rowntree Foundation and the Nationwide Foundation.  As an organisation that aims to influence policy makers and Government it was very useful for us to understand how we can better use language to ensure that those policy makers understand the challenges facing rural communities in accessing a decent home.

Kerry presented at a session on inclusive and sustainable homes, outlining some of the challenges facing rural areas in retrofitting existing stock where homes can be remote, face significant costs in installing low energy heating systems, and often require planning permission for the works if they are in National Parks, or AONB.

Kerry shared the Rural Design Guide  - building tomorrows rural communities, a comprehensive tool that aims to transform the approach to affordable housing in rural communities.

She also talked about the need to build houses that are energy efficient, but also future proof depending on future initiatives or demand for energy.

Kerry finished her session highlighting the importance of ensuring that policy makers understand the needs of rural communities, both for housing and infrastructure so that people can live in a warm, safe home, with access to employment, healthcare and a vibrant community.