The Rural Services Network annual National Rural Conference is taking place at the moment with over 500 bookings for the week of events

With each day focusing on a different rural topic, under the banner of Revitalising Rural, we are thrilled to be hosting such a wide reaching event!  Supported by NICRE, the National Innovation Centre for the Rural Enterprise the RSN is enabling its members to take part in both ‘plenary’ style sessions and ‘seminars’ online and hear from rural experts sharing their knowledge and experience.

Yesterday was Rural Economy Day sponsored by Green Energy UK and delegates heard from Professor Janet Dwyer who shared her views on Planning for Recession and Recovery, Rethinking the Innovation Agenda, followed by Nigel Wilcock of the Institute of Economic Development who introduced the Rural Opportunities Toolkit.  This toolkit was developed jointly by the IED and the RSN and it’s hoped will provide a useful tool for place shaping practitioners to ensure that rural areas are better recognised in economic strategies.  Watch this space for the full launch in the coming weeks!

The afternoon saw Professor Sally Shortall, the Duke of Northumberland Chair of Rural Economy from Newcastle University share her reflections on the future direction for the rural economy.  Alan Menzies, Director of Planning and Economic Regeneration at East Riding Council shared his views from the frontline at Revitalising Rural.

There is a full programme of sessions throughout the week, and although bookings are closed, information from the week’s sponsors and some overview information is available at this link 

Lord Foster of Bath, who was the Chair of the House of Lords Select Committee for the Rural Economy was interviewed by RSN Chief Executive Graham Biggs and this is available below:

Lord Foster talks of the importance of the Government needing to focus on rural areas and says “Successive Governments have totally undervalued the contribution that rural areas can make to the overall economy of the country…it’s great that the RSN is continuing the battle to achieve, by whatever name, a strategy for our rural economies.”

View the interview below: