While issues such as access to key services, food insecurity and fuel poverty can affect residents in all parts of the country, challenges such as these can impact rural communities in different ways.
Rural areas often cover large geographies with sparse populations, which can lead to local challenges and needs being masked – for example, some methods that are used to identify poverty can lead to deprivation in rural areas being overlooked or hidden.
This set of indicators, which can all be found within Local Insight, takes a look at some of the small-area data that can be used to help identify pockets of need in rural communities.
With Local Insight, you can examine this data – alongside hundreds of other indicators, for any area you care about – whether that is wards, parishes or towns. Book a demo to find out more.
Source: Department for Transport (DfT)
Current Local Insight data: 2019
This dataset is based on analysis of DfT spatial data on public transport timetables and road, cycle and footpath networks, combined with population and key service level statistics. This data shows the average minimum travel time to services such as employment centres, further education institutions, GPs, hospitals, schools and supermarkets – a key factor to consider when evaluating the needs of a rural community and what services it has limited access to.
Source: CDRC, Dr. Andy Newing and Francisco Videira, Leeds Institute for Data Analytics
Current Local Insight data: July 2020
This indicator is used to identify regions known as ‘food deserts,’ where residents have limited access to fresh and affordable food options, a common challenge in rural communities. The EFDI covers the availability of food retail options, the distance residents need to travel to reach these options, and the variety of food available. Rural communities can often have only a few grocery stores near them, leaving them without many options when it comes to finding affordable food.
Source: Ofcom
Current Local Insight data: 2023
This indicator measures the average broadband speed available in a community, which is a key factor in determining internet access and digital connectivity. This gives us insights into the digital infrastructure of an area, great for improving understanding the level of internet access available to rural residents.
Source: Census 2022 mid-year estimates
Current Local Insight data: Mid-2022
Rural communities are ageing faster than other parts of the UK, with approximately half of the rural population aged over 45, compared with 36 per cent in major urban areas. When younger people move to urban areas for opportunities, it leaves an older population that may require more support. To track the regions that are most vulnerable to the challenges caused by an ageing population, age-based indicators from the mid-year 2022 Census estimates are the most up-to-date information.
Source: Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy (BEIS)
Current Local Insight data: 2022
This indicator shows an estimate of the number of households in Fuel Poverty – which is defined as when a household is living in a property with an energy efficiency rating of band D, E, F or G – and its disposable income (income after housing costs and energy needs) would be below the poverty line. Homes in rural areas are typically less energy efficient and can be more reliant on potentially more expensive heating fuels.
Source: Consumer Research Data Centre (CDRC)
Current Local Insight data: 2024
People living in rural areas can lack easy access to services that are supportive of healthy living. The AHAH (the index of ‘Access to Healthy Assets and Hazards’) is a multi-dimensional index developed by the CDRC for Great Britain, measuring how ‘healthy’ neighbourhoods are. In particular the Retail Environment (access to fast food outlets, pubs, tobacconists, gambling outlets) domain and the Health Services (access to GPs, hospitals, pharmacies, dentists, leisure services) domain offer useful comparisons between access to healthcare, and prevalence of unhealthy services.
Source: Consumer Research Data Centre (CDRC)
Current Local Insight data: 2023
Poorly insulated homes are all too common across Britain but rural areas in particular have far too many people struggling to stay warm in the colder months. The Priority Places for Insulation Index (PPII) shows the relative circumstances of different local areas regarding the need for insulation of domestic homes. The index uses data from local housing stocks, as well as socio-economic and health data from local populations, to identify areas most in need of insulation and direct policy accordingly.
All of these datasets and more are available to use in Local Insight.
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