City promises greater focus on rural issues

New plans are being drawn up by the authority which would see people living in areas of the city that fall within the Peak District National Park given "as many opportunities as their urban counterparts."

Priorities will include providing more opportunities for people to start up businesses and access jobs and training, increasing the provision of affordable homes, giving people more help with accessing cheaper fuel providers, improving transport links to services and giving children more opportunities to access activities.

Bob McCann, Sheffield Council's cabinet member for housing, said: "Our aim is to ensure that people living in rural areas have, as far as possible, the same opportunities and access to services as those living in the city itself."

A consultation is to be carried out with people living in those rural parts of Sheffield, which are mainly in the north and west of the city.

The plans are to be discussed at tomorrow's meeting of the council's Cabinet committee, at 10am at the Town Hall.

The report to go before that meeting says that, while rural communities can draw tourists into Sheffield and help to make the city successful, they can also "face issues which need action to help them flourish."

A council spokesman said: "Although the average household income is higher in rural areas, this can mask small pockets of deprivation. For many people, particularly young families, a lack of affordable housing which meets their needs is an issue.

"And for those relying on public transport or on a low income, particularly elderly and young people, it can be difficult getting to the shops or other facilities."

The draft strategy for rural communities will now go out to a 12-week consultation, which will be mainly Internet-based. Consultation documents will also be available in public places such as libraries, and a "rural villages network workshop" will be held to talk to residents and councillors about the proposals.

An amended final strategy will then be published later this year.

Miranda Plowden, interim director of housing and regeneration at Sheffield Council, said: "The draft plan is what has come from going out into rural areas and talking to residents about what they want and how they want their communities to develop."