Photograph courtesy of Matt Pereira Photography / English Rural – Featuring English Rural’s patron HRH The Princess Royal addressing the conference.
Affordable Rural Housing: Opportunity in Changing Times – CCRI research contributes to the national conversation
Dr Demelza Jones, Research Fellow at the Countryside and Community Research Institute (CCRI), was an invited delegate to the national conference Affordable Rural Housing: Opportunity in Changing Times. Organised by English Rural and Action with Communities in Rural England (ACRE), the event was held at the historic Coram Campus in central London and brought together policy-makers, housing industry experts, academics, and third sector organisations to explore the pressing issue of affordable housing in rural areas.
The conference was addressed by English Rural’s patron Her Royal Highness The Princess Royal, and attendees discussed the vital role of affordable housing in unlocking economic potential and ensuring the social sustainability of rural communities – including powerful testimony from an English Rural housing resident on the opportunities that a quality, affordable home in their village had provided their family. While affordable housing is currently high on the government’s agenda, delegates highlighted the risk that rural areas could be overlooked due to the unique costs and complexities of delivery in these settings, and discussed strategies to reduce these risks.
The CCRI has been actively involved in this area through a recent commission from ACRE to independently evaluate the Rural Housing Enabler (RHE) programme. Funded by Defra, the RHE programme supports a national network of independent housing and community engagement specialists who act as ‘honest brokers’—facilitating collaboration between communities and local partners to progress small-scale affordable housing schemes in villages with evidenced housing need. This evaluation was led by Dr Demelza Jones, alongside CCRI colleagues Dr Katarina Kubinakova, Dr John Powell, and PhD researcher Kirsten Clarke, in partnership with Dr Jonathan Hobson of EAP Research Consultancy, and the findings were cited by speakers during the event.
In a related commission, Demelza, Katarina, and Honor Mackley-Ward are also undertaking research for the Rural Housing Network on the implications of English Devolution for the rural affordable housing agenda. This work further strengthens CCRI’s research expertise in rural housing and its commitment to supporting sustainable futures for rural communities.
