Rural Wiltshire
An overview
March 2010
Report prepared by:
Jackie Guinness
Senior Researcher
Policy, Research & Communications
Wiltshire Council
Telephone: 01225 713023
Email: [email protected]
www.wiltshire.gov.uk
Introduction
It is important for Wiltshire Council to support its rural communities which make up
50% of Wiltshire’s population living in 95% of the geographic area. Rural areas are
facing local challenges such as affordable housing, an ageing population, rural
isolation, and lesser accessibility. The statistical evidence contained in this document
will provide an overview of some of the issues that need to be considered to ensure
that rural Wiltshire continues to thrive. Also please note that the data provided for this
report is limited to a selection of socio-economic themes; i.e. it is not intended to be a
complete, wide ranging assessment of rurality.
Background
Rural areas have undergone significant economic, social and demographic changes
over the last thirty to forty years which has led to a countryside that is generally quite
prosperous. Some key changes include the decline of the traditional sectors of
employment and the in-migration of urban dwellers. However, these changes have
had a profound impact on rural society. House prices have risen, and the supply of
affordable housing for local residents has declined mainly because of the ability of
high income migrants to outbid local residents in the housing market. Rural services
have also been affected by the changing composition of the village population. These
former urban dwellers tend to be extremely mobile and are not reliant on local shops
or services, including public transport. This has been a contributory factor in the
decline in some of these services.
Defining rural Wiltshire
For the purposes of this report, Wiltshire will be
classified as either urban or rural according to the
recommended government definition. Accordingly
we have used the standard Office for National
Statistics rural-urban classification. The urbanrural classifications are classified into four
categories: urban, based on all settlements over
10,000 population; small town & fringe; and
hamlet and isolated dwellings. For the purposes
of this report we have combined the small town &
fringe, village and hamlet & isolated dwellings
categories into a single rural category1. The map2
on the right shows Wiltshire’s rural areas shaded
in green and the urban areas in grey.
1
The definition has been adopted by other rural local authorities for research purposes. It also falls in line with the
research on rural deprivation undertaken (commissioned) by the South West ACRE Network in October 2009 “The
Rural Share of Deprivation”
2
This map is reproduced from Ordnance Survey Material with the permission of Ordnance Survey on behalf of the
Controller of Her Majesty's Stationery Office © Crown Copyright. Unauthorised reproduction infringes Crown
Copyright and may lead to prosecution or civil proceedings. (100049050) Wiltshire Council 2010.
1
Comparing rural and urban Wiltshire
•
The analysis that has been undertaken for this report has revealed that although
there are some issues raised by rural areas that are not commonly found in urban
settings, many key issues are the same – they just have different connotations
in rural areas. All the indicators collected, collated and analysed for the purpose
of this report can be found in Charts 1 and 2 on pages 6 and 7.
•
The population structures of urban and rural Wiltshire are not hugely different.
Pensioners make up a slightly higher proportion of the population in rural than in
urban areas (22% compared to 20%) whilst there is a lower proportion of children
(aged 0 to 15) in rural than in urban areas (19% compared to 20%).
•
Wiltshire’s population (total of urban and rural) is set to increase by 42,300
persons between 2009 and 2026. With the sub retirement age population
projected only to increase by less than 300 people, the total population increase
of 9.2% will be almost entirely accounted for by our retired population. This poses
the council with a significant ‘ageing population’ problem. Many older people
will live active and healthy lives, contributing to their communities for many years,
however, for the very old, there may be barriers which prevent them from
accessing services, whether these are through poor finances, health or lack of
transport. With increasing numbers of pensioners living alone and deteriorating
health, there will be an enormous pressure on public sector resources to care for
older people in the future.
•
Worklessness lies at the root of deprivation. Worklessness which is based on
both unemployment – i.e. those who are actively seeking work – and other
forms of worklessness, including people who are not working through sickness or
lone parenthood. Indicators of worklessness show that the proportion of people in
rural areas who are on ‘out of work’ benefits is lower than in urban areas;
6% compared to 11% (Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) 2009). The
same pattern can be observed across many of the other key deprivation
indicators. See the Chart 1 on page 6 for more details.
•
Deprivation in rural areas tends to be dispersed and therefore less visible.
National aggregated measures used to analyse socio-economic environments
are sometimes unable to identify issues that are either dispersed or concentrated
in very small spatial scales. There is ‘hidden’ deprivation in rural Wiltshire
which existing measures are sometimes unable to recognise. It is therefore
acknowledged that it is people who are deprived and that incidences of
deprivation are not confined to deprived areas.
•
The Rural Facilities Survey 2008 shows that since 1976, there has been a
significant decline in the number of villages that have all four basic
facilities (i.e. general food shop, journey to work public transport, post
office and primary school). The number of settlements with primary schools
has decreased by around 30%, whereas around two thirds of villages have lost
their general food shop. Less than half of settlements in 2008 retain the Post
Office they had in 1976. The loss of post offices has been more pronounced in
independent branches rather than those linked with other businesses, with only
one third of non-linked post offices surviving. Public transport, however, has
improved vastly since 1976. Around 15% more settlements qualified for Level 1
and Level 2 Journey-to-work services in 2008 than in 1976. Against this
evidence of decline in local services, mobile sales and services (e.g. food sales,
2
video hire, laundry services, pet food, newspaper and fuel sales) have increased
nearly six-fold in the same period, and the number of personal and commercial
services within Wiltshire villages has increased from an average of 0.2 per
settlement in 1976 to 2.4 per settlement in 2008.
•
In relation to broadband internet, the data collected suggest that all of rural
Wiltshire can get some level of access but that the performance gap that exists
nationally between rural and urban areas is also present here. In 2008, the
government announced a target of universal broadband provision at ‘potential’
speeds of at least 2Mbps by 2012 however; about 40% of the rural geographic
area of Wiltshire has potential broadband speeds below 2mbps, compared
to around 10% of the urban area (Wiltshire Council 2009/10).
•
Individuals and families can be affected by broadband ‘inequality’, for example,
because children may not be able to do set homework online or people cannot
communicate effectively with organisations or government (both local and
central). Communities can also be affected because broadband is now
considered by many to be a basic service and its lack can drive people away.
Moreover, the provision of a reliable and fast broadband is required not only to
keep rural businesses competitive but to be able to attract inward investment.
•
Health is a major determinant of quality of life because it has a direct impact on:
an individual’s ability to live full and enjoyable life and; their ability to
independently maintain a reasonable standard of living. About 13% of the rural
population have a limiting long term illness (Census 2001) compared to 14% of
people in urban areas. According to data supplied by the Department for Work
and Pensions (DWP) 3% of people in rural areas are in receipt of Disability
Living Allowance compared to 4% of those living in urban areas. The proportion
of people in receipt of Attendance Allowance is the same for both – 3%. There
is therefore very little difference between rural and urban areas in terms of these
three indicators.
•
Housing affordability has been an issue of concern for some Wiltshire residents
who are contemplating entering the housing market for the first time. The
average house price in rural Wiltshire was £295,800 in 2008 whilst in the urban
area it was considerably lower at £195,800 (Land Registry 2008). Anecdotal
evidence suggests that many younger people and those on lower incomes have
been priced out of the villages and towns where they grew up. These trends raise
a real threat to our ability to maintain and develop sustainable, mixed and
inclusive rural communities.
•
Access to services in rural areas is also key to prosperous and sustainable
communities. When essential services such as hospitals, education, food shop,
post office or primary schools are not easily accessible, people run the risk of
becoming being socially excluded, especially if they have limited mobility and
public transportation is poor. According to the last Census (2001) most
households in rural areas will have access to a car or a van but about 12% do not
(a total of 10,089 households).
•
According to the Department for Communities and Local Government’s (DCLG)
Indices of Deprivation 2007, the most prevalent form of deprivation in
Wiltshire relates to barriers to housing and services. A total of 19 of Wiltshire
3
Lower Superoutput Areas3 (LSOAs) are within the 10% most deprived in the
South West and they are all rural. Moreover, 37 of the county’s LSOAs are within
the most deprived 10% in England in this domain and all but two are rural.
•
The Commission for Rural Communities’ Rural Data Series (2009) shows that :
- 8% of rural households in Wiltshire live more than 6kms from a principal GP
site and 4% live more than 14kms from a hospital.
- 2% of households in rural areas live more than 4km from a primary school,
31% live more than 6kms from a secondary school and 56% live more than
10kms from a principal job centre.
- 4% of households are more than 4kms from a post office, 30% are more
than 4kms from a convenience store, 37% are more than 4kms from a
supermarket and 30% are more than 4km from a free cash machine.
•
The business structure in Wiltshire’s rural area is slightly different to that of the
urban area (Office for National Statistics (ONS) 2008). The rural area has a
noticeably higher proportion of businesses employing between 1 to 10 people
(90% compared to 84%). Rural businesses have also generated a slightly higher
proportion of part time jobs than the urban economy (35% compared to 32%).
Consultation with communities
•
Analysis was carried out on Wiltshire Council’s People’s Voice surveys. However,
there is no discernible difference between the responses of people living in rural
areas and those living in urban areas.
•
However the Wiltshire Household survey 2009 shows some marked
differences:
- 73% of respondents in Wiltshire’s rural areas felt that they were satisfied (very
satisfied or fairly satisfied) with their home a place to live; a higher proportion
than those living in urban areas (55%).
- 77% of respondents in Wiltshire’s rural areas said that they felt safe (very
safe or fairly safe) in their local area after dark; a higher proportion than those
living in urban areas (50%).
- 42% of respondents in Wiltshire’s rural areas felt that they were satisfied (very
satisfied or fairly satisfied) with the local bus services; a lower proportion than
those living in urban areas (51%).
3
Super Output Areas (SOAs) were developed to provide geographies that are of approximately consistent size
across the country, and whose boundaries would not change over time. Each Lower Layer SOA has a minimum
population of 1,000 and a mean population of 1,500, and they are constrained by the boundaries of the wards used
for 2001 Census outputs.
4
Conclusion
•
By examining Wiltshire’s rural area it can be seen that on many of the indicators
examined there is not that much that distinguishes it from urban areas. It is,
however, its distinct features (e.g. accessibility) that compound issues such
as deprivation and social exclusion in a different way for people living there.
•
In terms of quality of life access to services is a major issue for many people
living in rural areas. Rural services have been affected by the changing
composition of village populations i.e. influx of urban dwellers to rural areas.
These former urban dwellers tend to be extremely mobile and are not reliant on
local shops or facilities, including public transport. Less demand for local services
has therefore contributed to the decline of these services. At the same time,
many local residents, especially the elderly, disabled and those on low
income, are often still dependent on them.
•
Sustainable economic development is of key importance in Wiltshire. A major
element is the provision of jobs and services and the ability of residents to
access these. In rural areas, access to these services can pose additional
barriers for residents to overcome.
•
The ageing population could have a very different impact for people living in
rural areas. Many older people will live active and healthy lives, contributing to
their communities for many years, however, for the very old, there may be
barriers which prevent them from accessing services, whether these are through
poor finances, health or lack of transport. With increasing numbers of pensioners
living alone and deteriorating health, there will be an enormous pressure on
public sector resources to care for them in the future.
•
Rural deprivation, which can take either a dispersed or concentrated form, can
often be overlooked due to the relative greater prosperity and income diversity of
many rural areas. This is because deprivation data is focused on an area based
approach rather than the location of deprived individuals.
•
The lack of affordable rural housing continues to be an issue for rural
communities. The danger is that community life in many villages and market
towns could face real challenges if first time buyers (mainly young people)
continue to be priced out of the areas where they grew up by an influx of wealthy
commuters, second home owners and retired couples.
•
The broadband ‘inequality’ that exists in rural Wiltshire, compared to urban
areas, is hugely significant. Rural residents need to be able to access the full
range of online services/opportunities that are available, currently and in the
future. Equally important is the role that broadband (and ‘next generation’
services) plays in fostering sustainable economic development.
Limitations of this report
•
Much of the data contained in the report derives from national and regional
sources. It is therefore inevitable that in some instances generalisations have
been made and broad conclusions have been reached for which there are
exceptions to the rule.
5
•
Since many of the issues facing the residents of rural areas relate to distributional
issues (e.g. comparatively poorer access to services and dispersed deprivation),
ideally they would need to be investigated at the lowest spatial level possible.
Chart 1: Proportion of population (or units) within rural and urban Wiltshire
that belong to the following key groups.
10%
Broadband connectivity of speeds below 2mbps (Jan 2010)
Businesses employing 200 people or more (2008)
Businesses employing betw een 50 and 199 people (2008)
40%
1%
0%
3%
1%
Business employing betw een 11 and 49 people (2008)
8%
13%
84%
90%
Businesses employing 1 to 10 people (2008)
35%
32%
Jobs that are part time (2008)
65%
68%
Jobs that are full time (2008)
Disability Living Allow ance claimants (Aug 2009)
4%
3%
Attendance Allow ance claimants (Aug 2009)
3%
3%
14%
13%
People w ith a limiting long term illness (2001)
7%
4%
People w ho are employment deprived (IMD 2007)
15%
11%
Older people living in income deprivation (IMD 2007)
Children living in income deprivation (IMD 2007)
9%
15%
10%
7%
People w ho are income deprived (IMD 2007)
3%
2%
Jobseekers Allow ance claimants ( Jan 2010)
Out of w ork benefits' claimants ( 2009)
6%
People born outside the UK (2001)
5%
6%
11%
4%
4%
People in non-w hite British ethnic goups (2001)
2%
1%
People in non-w hite ethnic groups (2001)
20%
22%
Pensioners (2008)
60%
59%
Working age ( 2008)
20%
19%
Children aged 0 to 15 (2008)
Urban
Rural
0%
10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90%
100
%
6
Chart 2: Proportion of population (or units) within rural and urban Wiltshire
that belong to the following key groups.
Househods more than 4kms from a supermarket (2009)
0%
Households more than 4kms from a free cash machine
(2009)
0%
Households more than 4kms from a convenience store
(2009)
0%
37%
30%
30%
0%
Householdsmore than 4kms from a post office (2009)
4%
Households more than 14kms from a hospital (2009)
Households more than 4kms from a primary school (2009)
Household more than 6kms from a secondary school
(2009)
0%
9%
0%
2%
0%
31%
Households more than 10kms from a principal job centre
(2009)
Households more than 6kms from a principal GP site
(2009)
4%
56%
0%
8%
29%
People travelling more than 10km to work (2001)
People working at home (2001)
Households with no car or van (2001)
Urban
0.0%
37%
8%
14%
20%
12%
10.0%
20.0%
30.0%
40.0%
50.0%
60.0%
Rural
7