Hard-hit rural communities braced for more challenges

In a report published today by the Commission for Rural Communities, it is said a "public sector recession" could have a major impact on rural areas where there is high public-sector employment.

Recent figures showed as many as one in three people in the East Riding of Yorkshire are employed in the public sector while North Yorkshire has an estimated 60,000 people employed in providing public services.

The CRC also said, however, that while the recession has hit the countryside hard rural businesses are proving to be highly resilient and are showing a higher rate of survival than their urban counterparts.

Firms and enterprises in the countryside contribute more than 100bn to the economy and rural areas are set to benefit the most from the opportunities offered by the burgeoning renewable energies sector.

The CRC report said more than 100,000 people lost their jobs in the countryside during the recession..

It also said one in four people living in rural areas were classed as being in "income poverty", meaning they earn less than 60 per cent of the national median income, and that the impact of recession can be seen with the losses in services over the past year relating to closure of banks, building societies, pubs, restaurants and petrol stations.

Dr Stuart Burgess, chairman of the commission, said: "While the recession has hit rural areas hard, with some rural areas experiencing greater increases in unemployment than urban ones, rural businesses have higher rates of survival. Rural businesses contribute substantially to the nation's prosperity, adding 145 billion in Gross Value Added in 2007.

"The report shows that rural England has some huge strengths and none more relevant at this time than the enduring sense of community which enables many communities to compensate for the lack of local services which their urban counterparts have taken for granted, for example high-speed broadband."