Resources and links

Below is a list of resources and links helpful to those involved in planning for and enabling rural housing.

Allocations policy

Fair and Flexible: statutory guidance on social housing allocations for local authorities in England (2009)  See page 28 for regard to local lettings plans in rural communities.

Case studies and best practice

Rural Excellence Programme Phase 2 (2008)  Phase Two of the Rural Excellence programme, delivered by the Improvement & Development Agency, focuses on the strategic housing capacity of rural authorities.

Elected members and parish councillors

Councillor's Guide (2009)  The guide, produced by the Improvement & Development Agency, discusses councillors’ roles and responsibilities as ward representatives.

Affordable Rural Housing: A practical guide for parish councils (2010).  Produced by the National Housing Federation's Rural Housing Alliance.

Engagement and empowerment

Duty to Involve: Making it work - Pitchford, Ramsdon and Archer (2009)   The guide is the Community Development Foundation's perspective on how authorities can prepare and act in order to meet their statutory responsibilities regarding the duty to involve.

Equalities

Common Ground: Equality, good race relations and site for Gypsies and Irish Travellers (2006)  The report of Commission for Racial Equality (now the Equality and Human Rights Commission) inquiry in England and Wales.  Click here for a summary of the report.

Migration and Rural Economies: Assessing and addressing risks - Chappell, Latorre, Rutter & Shah (2009)  This report forms part of the Institute of Public Policy Research's  'Economics and Migration' project.  This report suggests that as rural economies recover in the medium term, after the downturn, demand for migrant labour will rise, but availability may fall.  The report states that this disjunction is likely for two reasons: 1. Inflexibility of immigration policies; and 2. lack of availability of affordable housing.

Finance

Ways to finance land and rural housing schemes with little or no Social Housing Grant.  A report and toolkit by Andrew Williamson OBE,  Rural Resource Unit, Hastoe Housing Association (October 2007)

Land

Faith in Affordable Housing guide (2009)   Faith in Affordable Housing  guide presents nine case studies including rural areas. 

Great Expectations: Management of Land Supply (2009)  This report, produced by the Chartered Institute of Housing examines recent practice and considers the lessons for more effective management of land supply.

Register of Public Sector Land (2010)  Every three months the Homes and Communities Agency publishes a summary of site details from the Register of Surplus Public Sector Land. 

Profile and campaigns

Save Our Village campaign guide (2010)  A guide to the National Housing Federation's  Save Our Village campaign

Second home ownership

RTPI News - Second homes in rural communities (2009) Rhian Brimble, the rural planning network manager for the RTPI wrote a piece about second home ownership in rural communities on 8th May 2009

Rapid Evidence Assessment of the Research Literature on the Purchase and Use of Second Homes (2008) This report sets out the results of a rapid evidence assessment of the research literature on the purchase and use of second homes by a team led by Professor Oxley at the Centre for Comparative Housing Research

Strategic planning and policy - reports

A Place in the Country? An inquiry into the North's rural housing challenge (2009)   A report by the National Housing Federation  focussing on the rural communities in the north of England

Keeps Villages Alive (2010)  National Housing Federation's report launched at the Rural Affordable Housing Project final event.

Living Working Countryside: The Taylor Review of Rural Economy and Affordable Housing (2008)  Matthew Taylor's influential report investigating and making recommendations on the role of affordable housing and planning within the context of enabling and maintaining sustainable rural communities.

Open Source Planning Green Paper (2010)  Conservative's policy green paper on planning.

The provision of new affordable housing in larger rural settlements (2008)

Toolkits and guidance

Guidance for RHEs on the implementation of rural exception sites (2010)  Guidance produced by the National Association of Rural Housing Enablers.  Membership of the group is open to all Rural Housing Enablers regardless of host organisation. See guidance for contact details.

Rural proofing toolkit (2009)  The Commission for Rural Communities has devised a rural proofing toolkit and guidance.