Access to services
25 Sep 2023
Culture Secretary promises to protect traditional TV
Last week the Culture Secretary, Lucy Frazer, committed to ensuring traditional TV viewers will not be left behind in the digital switchover. In her key-note speech to the Royal Television...
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25 Sep 2023
Lib Dems promise better access to rural GPs
New research carried out by the Liberal Democrats shows the four-week waiting time to see a GP is three times higher in some rural areas than urban ones. The figures...
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11 Sep 2023
New report reveals broadband outages have doubled in last year
A new report from Uswitch, reveals that broadband outages have doubled in the last year. Sky News report that: “Uswitch’s report found 15% of people have been prevented from working...
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01 Sep 2023
New face-to-face service aims to help bridge the digital divide
The Government and the Post Office have joined forces to provide an in-person support service for those who may struggle to access government services online. The face-to-face service will be...
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21 Aug 2023
£70m boost to transform youth centres
The recipients of the latest government grants for transforming youth clubs in England have been announced. Local Councils and youth groups were encouraged to submit applications to provide out-of-school activities...
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14 Aug 2023
Conference Spotlight: Focus on Rural Transport
It is vital that rural communities can access employment, training, education and services such as medical appointments. A lack of public transport options can make this more difficult. We’ve seen...
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14 Aug 2023
Urban Councils budget to spend double that of rural on discretionary services
Research, completed by the Rural Services Network has shown that Urban Councils budget to spend double that of rural councils on discretionary services per head for the year 2023 –...
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14 Aug 2023
Figures show reduction in bus routes
Newspapers have reported last week of the reduction in bus routes over the last year as official figures are published by the Department for Transport. The BBC reports that ‘the...
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14 Aug 2023
Broadcast 2040 campaign stresses importance of services
The Express Newspaper ran a story last week focusing on the Broadcast 2040 campaign, of which the Rural Services Network is a member. It followed reports of a fall in...
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07 Aug 2023
Post Offices and pharmacies top of local services
The Association of Convenience Stores, one of our Rural Services Partnership members, last week launched their 2023 Community Barometer. This explores how people value the services in their local area,...
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