Analysis & Commentary
06 Dec 2015
Can we save rural churches from closure?
Are rural communities ready and able to stop rural churches from closing? Jessica Sellick investigates. In recent weeks, media coverage has described rural clergy as ‘close to drowning’ under the...
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29 Nov 2015
Unravelled: Autumn Statement 2015
What the government’s 2015 Autumn Statement and Spending Review mean for local authorities. Chancellor George Osborne delivered his 2015 Autumn Statement and Spending Review to Parliament on 25 November 2015. This...
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09 Nov 2015
Mind the [rural] funding gap
With less funding now available, are rural communities feeling the pinch? Jessica Sellick investigates. Many community groups, parish and town councils, charities and social enterprises have relied upon grants programmes...
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19 Oct 2015
Just how much is nature worth?
Are we obscuring nature’s true value and putting the rural environment at even greater risk? Jessica Sellick investigates. Back in 2011, the government published the UK’s first National Ecosystem Assessment....
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11 Oct 2015
What’s going on with Post Office Locals?
Post Office Locals are meant to deliver a better service for customers, as well as savings for taxpayers. But something is going wrong, finds Brian Wilson. Post Office Locals are...
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04 Oct 2015
Growing challenge of the rural elderly
What can be done to tackle loneliness in older rural people? Jessica Sellick investigates. One in five elderly people in the UK feels they have no-one to turn to, according...
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31 Aug 2015
What’s (not) in the rural productivity plan
Is the government’s Rural Productivity Plan focusing on the right issues? Jessica Sellick investigates. The government says its Rural Productivity Plan reaffirms its commitment to rural communities. But is it...
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10 Aug 2015
What future for coastal communities?
We are an island nation. But are we delivering benefits for our rural coastal communities? Jessica Sellick investigates. We are an island nation. None of us apparently lives more than...
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19 Jul 2015
Transport for an ageing rural society
Viable alternative transport options to the car is important for the health and wellbeing of an ageing population, says Brian Wilson. A fairly recent news item told us that there...
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19 Jul 2015
Will the rural productivity plan work?
How can we support rural places to thrive? And what should be in the government’s rural Productivity Plan? Jessica Sellick investigates. Reasons why rural areas have grown or declined since...
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