RSN gives evidence on Rural Broadband to EFRA
Graham Biggs was part of a panel of rural experts that gave evidence recently to the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee who are currently exploring rural broadband and mobile coverage, the urban-rural divide, and future infrastructure challenges as the UK embraces full-fibre and 5G Along with Jeremy Leggett of ACRE and Mark Bridgeman of CLA, […]
Petition calls on Government to fund free TV licences
A petition on the Age UK website that is calling on the Government to fund free TV licences for over-75s has reached half a million signatures. The petition, Switched Off: Save free TV for older people, aims to reached 650,000 signatures. The Age UK petition says: ‘The BBC has announced they plan to means-test TV […]
Post Office workers pay rates to be reviewed to stop branch closures
Post Office workers could be set for a pay rise after ministers agreed to review their wage rates in order to try to halt branch closures Many postmasters have warned that years of pay cuts have wiped out their profits, leaving them no choice but to close. Around £110million has been wiped off postmaster pay since […]
Families trapped in poverty in rural Britain
Channel 4 has produced a ten-minute news piece on poverty in rural Britain as part of its Breadline Britain series. The video emphasises that while the countryside is often idyllic looking, severe areas of poverty also exist which often pass unnoticed. In particular, ‘in-work’ poverty is prevalent and several interviewees said that they feel they […]
‘Perfect storm’ causing rural bus decline
Bus Users UK has published a ten-point plan to reverse the decline in rural services, according to the website Transport-Network.co.uk The group, which represents bus users, said that ‘changing lifestyles, flexible working, funding cuts and the regulatory environment are forcing rural bus services into decline’. The report, Rural buses: reversing the decline, calls for reform […]
Money shouldn’t be invested in ‘inefficient’ schools
Schools Minister Lord Agnew has said that the Government should not pour money into ‘inefficient’ schools, according to Tes Addressing the Confederation of Schools Trusts’ summer conference last week, he said that schools ‘must get their houses in order’ to receive further funding and said he had seen first-hand the scale of waste in some […]
Rural surgery pioneers social prescribing
ITV covers the story of a rural medical centre in Lancashire that aims to turn patients away from pills and towards pastimes like dominoes, draughts and dancing Social prescribing involves helping patients improve their health and wellbeing by encouraging them to try out activities which may benefit them – outside of traditional NHS treatments. Dr […]
