The needs of the poorest and most vulnerable people living in the Northumberland countryside are ignored by the UK Government in a way that would not be acceptable in urban areas, academics say in a new book.
Rural Poverty Today, which has been penned by researchers from Newcastle University, Scotland's Rural College (SRUC) and Inverness Impact-Hub, aims to hone in on the issues facing the poorest people living across the British countryside, with the North Tyne Valley one of three areas under the microscope. Its authors say that voluntary groups, charities and communities are left to fill the gaps left by the UK Government's neglect of rural communities in its policies.
ChronicleLive has recently revealed that children are washing in streams and using head torches to do homework in areas of rural Northumberland that are not connected to the electricity grid, and being quoted tens of thousands of pounds by power companies just to be connected. Northumberland Log Bank is coming out of its fourth winter supplying logs to those in fuel poverty, whilst there are several food banks delivering food parcels to families in need throughout the county.
Read more: 'Children bathing in streams': The harsh reality facing 350 Northumberland families living off-grid
Further challenges faced by rural residents include a lack of public transport, lack of affordable food, seasonal working patterns, and unreliable mobile phone coverage and internet access.
Mark Shucksmith, Professor of Planning at Newcastle University and one of the books authors said: "Nobody should be disadvantaged because of where they live, but poor and vulnerable people in rural areas very much are. Life is tough for anyone living in poverty but those who live in the countryside face a very specific set of additional challenges.
"Rural citizens should expect fairness and similar rights of citizenship - that is, fair outcomes including access to services which meet needs, investment in social and economic infrastructure, transparent decisions based on evidence, equal opportunities to participate in society, and a fair hearing and an effective voice in decision making."
"If you’re receiving benefits you will be told to attend an appointment many miles away. But how are you going to get there if you don’t have a car and there are no buses or trains where you live?
"If you don’t attend the meeting you won’t get the benefits you rely on. So what do you do? It’s a Catch 22 situation that many people living in rural areas face."
Another of the book's authors, Dr Jane Atterton of Scotland's Rural College, believes that the cost of living is hitting rural households even harder than those in towns and cities. She said: "This is because they have to spend a higher proportion of their household income on fuel for transport and on heating their homes which tend to be older, poorly insulated and often not connected to mains energy supplies."
As well as focusing on the North Tyne Valley, authors researched East Perthshire and the Isle of Harris. While each area had its own unique characteristics, there were similarities in the challenges facing the residents.
Researchers heard how people are disadvantaged due to a complicated benefits system, particularly those with poor digital skills or who have limited internet or mobile phone access. The benefits system is not designed to deal with the irregular incomes of people doing seasonal work and can exacerbate financial hardship for the people it is meant to help.
Another issue is the way that poverty can be hidden in the countryside. Some rural people don't claim the benefits they are entitled to, preferring to get by and rely on friends and family, often due to the stigma attached. Also, the affluence of many incomers can obscure the hardships of others.
Professor Shucksmith finished: "There is a tendency to idealise rural communities as places where everyone looks after one another, and it would seem that this reputation for self- help and social cohesion legitimises the state withdrawing welfare services from rural areas. This idea that rural communities can just look after themselves is not based in reality and it is causing some of the people who live in them harm."
Rural Poverty Today is written by Mark Shucksmith, Jayne Glass, Polly Chapman and Jane Atterton and is published by Policy Press. For more information, visit the Bristol University Press website.
A DWP spokesperson said: “Our welfare system helps millions of people across both urban and rural areas every year and it is vital that it can be accessed by all who need it.
“We fund support for Universal Credit applications through the Help to Claim service, provided by Citizens Advice, and people can also phone our free Universal Credit helpline for support with their claim.
“Our dedicated Work Coaches also help to ensure all customers have a direct line of contact and can access tailored one-to-one support in person at the jobcentre.”
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