State of the UK Countryside 2007

Rural facts from the rural UK:

• In 2005 the average rural business employed 6 employees. This compares with 16 employees in urban firms.

• The three-year survival rate of enterprises registering in 2002 in rural areas was 76% (6% higher than urban districts).

The UK is addressing rural issues with a Commission for Rural Communities. They have just released The State of the Countryside 2007 report. It provides a comprehensive description of social, economic and environmental conditions and changes across rural England. They have done a good job highlighting the main challenges and future trends for government and other organizations.

They have done a good job of dividing the report for presentation on the web, plus you can download the full report.

Here are a couple more facts from the report:

• 1 in 3 rural households (1.38 million rural households) are ‘workless’, with no adult of working age in work.

• Between 2002/3 and 2005/6, rural local authorities experienced a 209% growth in non-UK migrant workers compared with 67% growth in urban areas.

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Becky McCray

Becky started Small Biz Survival in 2006 to share rural business and community building stories and ideas with other small town business people. She and her husband have a small cattle ranch and are lifelong entrepreneurs. Becky is an international speaker on small business and rural topics.

www.beckymccray.com

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