Rural Communities
24 Nov 2025
RTPI Calls for Rural Focus in English Devolution and Community Empowerment Bill
The Royal Town Planning Institute (RTPI) has published an amendment briefing calling for the English Devolution and Community Empowerment Bill to explicitly recognise and address the needs of rural communities....
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24 Nov 2025
Small Grants Scheme Reopens for Village Halls in England
Village halls in England can once again apply for small grants to support improvements, as the Defra-funded scheme managed by Action with Rural Communities in England (ACRE) has reopened. The...
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21 Nov 2025
RSN Responds To Fair Funding 2.0
Remoteness Must Be Recognised Across All Services The Rural Services Network (RSN) has expressed disappointment that the Government’s updated Fair Funding 2.0 proposals fail to fully reflect the additional costs...
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18 Nov 2025
Removing Rural Barriers Could Unlock Major Opportunities
The House of Lords Social Mobility Policy Committee has today published its report Social Mobility: Local Roots, Lasting Change setting out how educational and work opportunities must be better integrated...
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17 Nov 2025
Cash For Sports, Arts, Culture And Community Wellbeing
A RAFT of funding is available to boost sports, arts, culture and community wellbeing in Ribble Valley. But be quick off the mark, because the finishing line for applications to...
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10 Nov 2025
Parliament Hears Rural Community Business Concerns At Report Launch
More than 70 politicians, partners and community business representatives gathered at the Houses of Parliament this week for the launch of Plunkett UK’s flagship research report, Community ownership: A Better...
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03 Nov 2025
New IMD Acknowledges Challenges Of Measuring Rural Need
The Government has published the English Indices of Deprivation 2025 (IoD 2025) – the seventh update of England’s official measure of multiple deprivation – alongside, for the first time, a...
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03 Nov 2025
MPs Warn Rural Communities Risk Missing Out from Bus Services Act Reforms
Thousands of passengers could benefit from more reliable bus services after the Government’s Bus Services Act became law on 27 October 2025. The legislation gives councils new powers to protect...
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03 Nov 2025
The Lion Roars For Community Connection
The Lion at Ickleton, near Saffron Walden, Cambridgeshire, has opened a community café to provide a safe space to help people connect and socialise. The pub, which was reopened in...
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27 Oct 2025
CQC Warns Underfunded Community Services Risk Care Quality ‘Erosion’
The Care Quality Commission (CQC) has warned that the health and social care system remains fragmented and under severe strain as England prepares for a major shift from hospital to...
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