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Community

Linking community

Valuing local community

I grew up in a commuter town. A dormitory town. No one really knew their neighbours everyone got up early, Walked to the station, caught the train to London. then in the evening, caught the train back and walked home again, by which time it was late and everyone was tired. There was a social hall, But it was a long way on the other side of town, So people met largely in commercial premises in the High Street, which was a long parade of shops and of course the local pubs. I moved to a rural area some time ago. As it is quite the adjustment. There are a lot of things that are common in towns which rural areas don’t experience. Public transport is one of them. A plethora of food delivery Options is another. A doctors or a food shop in walking distance. Taxi services. A wide choice of regular Sporting and social events. Living in a rural area means making the most of the facilities and options that are available. Knowing when the library bus will visit, When and where a Mobile post office Will be available. What Services there are at the mobile post office. And what and where social events provided by volunteer groups of community halls can be enjoyed? Local trades and services I more dispersed than in town so information on these is vital for rural homes. And small businesses, Local Tradespeople Rely on the local community for their livelihoods. Communication is vital to a society and In a rural area We are so much more disbursed spread out that communication needs a greater variety of methods than in a dense population. I know that my own dad has no technology at all and will not have a smart phone or a laptop. He still lives in the town and can walk to places like a bank, A doctors and a food shop. There are 4.5 million people in the UK who do not have a smart phone. This is 8% of the population. But amongst people over 75, it is 28% of the population . More than one in four. My own dad is one of them. At 10 million people live in rural areas , A number which is increasing, Are the more rural the area the older its average age and the faster its average age was increasing. over a million people in England lived in "transport deserts" (areas with no practical public transport options) and more than 1.3 million people were at least 2km from a regular bus service - One in 5 rural bus routes have vanished in the past five years with government funding favouring buses in town instead.

Meaning that those of us that live in rural areas have to make clever use of the facilities that are available. For these people, Rural facilities are vital and communication of availability of what services, where and when Is a literal lifeline.