“It is just as important to address the inequality within regions as it is between regions, as this is where rural disadvantage is rife.”
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Will the government’s levelling up’ agenda reach the rural South West?
Levelling up rural: unlocking the potential – Vision Group for Sidmouth
Levelling up in the South West – Vision Group for Sidmouth
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The CPRE has been pushing for a level playing field when it comes to the allocation of funding:
At the moment, the government is focused on levelling up on the inequalities between the nine English regions; but this fails to capture the inequalities experienced by the communities that live within each of these regions. It is just as important to address the inequality within these regions as it is between the regions, as this is where rural disadvantage is rife.
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And it looks at the mechanism by which central government funds are allocated:
Why CPRE wants to make the Green Book greener
Something we talk about a lot at CPRE is how rural issues are often forgotten about when it comes to getting support from the government. One of the reasons for this is to do with the process government uses to allocate its money to local authorities, a process known as the Green Book. But what is the Green Book? And why does it affect rural areas? Lizzi Hearn explains all …
Why CPRE wants to make the Green Book greener – CPRE
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With more here from the Rural Services Network:
Green Book Summary v4 with recommendations by Rural Services… – Flipsnack
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Meanwhile, the government has been looking at these ideas:
Rural proofing | Practical guidance to assess impacts of policies on rural areas | March 2017
Government-response-Time-for-a-strategy-for-the-rural-economy.pdf (July 2019)
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This academic study from May 2019 shows that we are faced with the fundamental premise of a “binary of urban/rural”: