Rural poverty is a problem in the UK - 17% of rural households in England are experiencing relative poverty after housing costs - yet it is often unseen - hidden by tourism and/or wealthier neighbours. Urban areas have been the dominant focus in social science research on UK poverty, however, responses to urban poverty are not directly translatable to rural contexts. A few years ago the Over the last decade, the Suffolk Community Foundation has commissioned two Hidden Needs Reports based on extentive quantitative research in out own county. See https://www.suffolkcf.org.uk/information-and-reports/
This month, the University of Coventry has published a new report which used a participatory methodology to understand people’s experiences of hidden hardship in the rural North Cotswolds, Gloucestershire. The research covers people’s hardship journeys, coping strategies and navigation of barriers to improved wellbeing. Here is a shortened version of the key recommendations for policy-makers and organisations:
1. There need to be more tailored national government and national voluntary sector responses to rural hardship. Rural and urban hardship are not the same and each pose different challenges.
2. More government and voluntary sector support is needed for individuals experiencing daily rural hardship including within the welfare state to address the high cost of rural living.
3. Rural residents need support accessing transport to get to medical appointments at GP surgeries and hospitals with local GP practices/branches re-opening and/or staying open.
4. Local organisations and leaders (including Church leaders) should raise awareness in the general population in rural areas that people are experiencing hardship, and sensitively give a voice to people experiencing hardship to share their experiences.
5. The ‘lacks of’ that cause and affect rural hardship need to be addressed in local and national government planning, notably public transport/ infrastructure, affordable housing, and amenities. These need to be shown to local residents to be possible to change and influence, rather than being outside of people’s control making it difficult to envisage a more positive future.
You can read the full research at https://hiddenhardship.coventry.ac.uk/