Rural Housing Week

Highlights of Rural Housing Week 2024

We were delighted to see so much support for Rural Housing Week across the sector, both online and off.

We published the Rural Life Monitor 2024, a report exploring how the housing crisis affects rural communities, services and business. It examines the issues today and the ways in which housing associations in rural areas are working to address these.

The Rt Revd Dr Guli Francis-Dehqani, Bishop of Chelmsford and the Church of England’s lead Bishop for Housing wrote in her blog that ‘for our rural communities to flourish, we need housing which is high-quality, affordable, and adapted to those who need it’ and set out exactly what we need in order to make this vision a reality.

In another blog, Rory Weal, Co-chair of the Rural Homelessness Counts Coalition wrote that while rural areas are far from exempt from the rising tide of homelessness, ‘our communities have strengths which we can build upon… [and by] empowering communities to prioritise inclusion and tackle social problems together, we can ensure no one is homeless or left behind’.

During a webinar, we explored how the housing crisis impacts rural areas – from the local economy to the people who live and work there. Speakers also discussed possible interventions that would deliver more affordable housing.

We also supported the launch of A Design Guide: Building Tomorrow’s Rural Communities, a comprehensive tool that aims to transform the approach to affordable housing in rural communities.