Hinterland
Rural News
Cheers to that: inside the rise of Britain’s community-run pubs
My friend Chris Cowcher at Plunkett is a fabulous champion for community run pubs. It’s great to see this groundswell which I am sure he will be raising a glass to!!! While hundreds of rural hostelries have shut down over the last decade, these establishments – generally owned by local “shareholders” – are gloriously bucking […]
UK tourism industry in peril as overseas visitors stay away
Sobering food for thought here…. Last year’s boom in British summer holidays was not enough to save thousands of tourism businesses, despite increased domestic bookings to popular places such as Cornwall and the Yorkshire Dales. A survey by the Tourism Alliance of 1,927 tour operators, hotels, attractions, language schools and other travel and hospitality businesses […]
Rural families struggle to find homes as holiday lets surge
Good old CPRE…. Rural families are being deprived of housing by a 1,000% surge in the number of short-term lets and holiday properties, according to countryside charity CPRE. The huge increase was revealed in a survey by the charity – formerly the Campaign to Protect Rural England – which looked at property tenures over a […]
Plans to protect England’s national parks set out
I find the structures around national parks beguiling – better get on and read this carefully….. Plans to safeguard England’s national parks for future generations have been unveiled by the government. The proposals also aim to improve access to nature and ensure landscapes are key to tackling climate change. It follows a review of protections […]
The humble minibus could be a rural lifeline
Cracking letter this – quoted in full. Very often the simplest solutions are the best!!! It tells says: Your report (Bus services in England face axe as end to emergency Covid funding looms, 11 January) doesn’t mention the most economic solution to connect communities to town centres – the minibus. I am an honorary director […]
Sort out housebuilding obstacles or miss target, Lords warn UK government
We seem never to get this issue right, we seem always to be mired in controversy about the way forward. A new year seems to be bringing very little change to either of my previous statements. This article tells us: Britain faces a housing crisis in the wake of the pandemic as confusion about planning rules and […]
NHS England strikes private hospitals deal to fight Omicron surge
This article, along with tennis tales from down under, makes me wonder what we might learn from a map showing the rural/urban split in terms of the incidence of people who haven’t had the vaccine….. Hospitals in England will be able to use private hospitals and staff under a deal with the NHS to maintain […]
Jackie Weaver pleads for return of online council meetings
More power to your elbow Jackie, much easier to turn objectionable meeting goers off on line! And easier (broadband allowing) for rural dwellers to get to meetings and for that matter look in on them. This story tells us: The government’s failure to enable local politicians to meet virtually is hampering councils, worrying older councillors […]
Calls for windfall tax as North Sea oil and gas profits soar
Here was I thinking changing times had done for the likes of these big oil and gas giants….With more homes off grid in rural settings these rising costs are likely to hit rural dwellers hardest. This article tells us: Bumper shareholder payouts, soaring profits, booming asset valuations: the oil and gas industry has bounced back […]
Jeremy Clarkson Diddly Squat Farm restaurant refused permission
Money and celebrity can be a curse in some places. I am sure there is more to this story than those two issues but I never fail to be fascinated by the way planning decisions play out in localities. A planned new restaurant for TV personality Jeremy Clarkson’s Oxfordshire farm has been refused permission. Diddly […]
Spain: Badger thought to have found Roman treasure
Hinterland regularly features the antics of charismatic mega fauna and this is one of the best yet – whilst badgers may be a source of significant controversy in rural England, in Spain they are moving into archaeology according to this tale, which tells us: A hungry badger is thought to have unearthed the largest collection […]
Cyclist deaths soar on rural roads in England
This is a depressing story and serves to remind us of how difficult a mix cyclists and rural drivers are. Lest anyone think the dangerous relationship between cyclists and other road users is only an urban phenomena this story gives us wider cause for thought. It tells us…. The coronavirus lockdowns created a cycling boom […]