Supporting people in rural areas

Citation

(2002), "Supporting people in rural areas", Property Management, Vol. 20 No. 5. https://doi.org/10.1108/pm.2002.11320eab.003

Supporting people in rural areas

Supporting people in rural areas

Helping people with support needs to live in their own homes and communities is a challenge at the best of times, add to this the issues of high house prices, lack of access to services and the remoteness and isolation of many rural areas and that challenge becomes immense.

A new report Support and Housing in the Countryside, launched on 17 June 2002 by the Countryside Agency (the Housing Associations' Charitable Trust) and the Housing Corporation, investigates through a number of case studies the particular issues surrounding supporting people in rural communities.

Supporting and Housing in the Countryside highlights the differences made to peoples' lives through the provision of a support service, it looks at how the projects meet the aims of the organisations funding them, sets out some examples of best practice, and finally offers recommendations on the best way to deliver supported housing in rural areas.

The report also gives guidance on how the supporting people initiative can be implemented to encompass a variety of age groups and levels of need in rural areas.

Countryside Agency chief executive Richard Wakeford said: "Housing and support services can contribute to the sustainability of rural communities, which have diverse needs. The results from this programme demonstrate the wide range of different approaches required and the importance of tailoring service delivery to meet the needs of small and dispersed populations. I urge everyone who reads this report to consider how they can help overcome the particular problems of rural isolation and make a contribution to sustainable communities for the future."

The report can be viewed on the Web site at: www.countryside.gov.uk