Barry Gardiner, Minister for Rural Affairs, announced that Defra will begin researching a new funding programme to increase affordable rural housing.
The feasibility study will be funded by Defra and led by the Housing Corporation. It will consider the case for a new time limited funding programme to help local organisations overcome local barriers to the provision of affordable homes in rural areas.
Barry Gardiner launched the study at the Commission for Rural Communities' Affordable Rural Housing Commission - One Year On conference. The conference marks the anniversary of the publication of the Affordable Rural Housing Commission's final report. This highlighted the shortage of affordable rural housing and came forward with practical solutions to improve access.
Mr Gardiner said: "I have asked the Housing Corporation to look into how a new fund could improve provision of affordable housing in rural areas. I want this research to focus on outcomes rather than processes. I want to know exactly how such a fund could achieve increased provision of affordable rural homes where they are needed, promote best practice and overcome local barriers.
"The fund would be designed to empower people to work out what is best for their particular parts of rural England rather than take decisions for them. Local people know best what their particular problems are and how best to overcome them.
"The next milestone at the national level will be the Comprehensive Spending Review - where the provision of social housing has been identified as a priority."
If the study shows that a new funding programme is needed, funding would be subject to the Comprehensive Spending Review, which will report later this year.
The latest figures suggest that good progress has been made in the provision of new affordable homes in rural areas. In 2005/06 almost 45,000 new units of affordable housing were provided across England. Of these, 23% were provided in rural local authority areas, mirroring the proportion of the population living in rural areas.
Any potential new funding programme will not dictate solutions but instead empower local organisations to find their own answers. This could include new approaches based on local conditions and knowledge, or existing mechanisms, such as Rural Housing Enablers.
Responding to the Affordable Rural Housing Commission's recommendations, the Housing Corporation also recently set up the Rural Housing Advisory Group, which is looking at innovative ways to increase the supply of affordable homes in rural areas.
The Rural Housing Advisory Group will report annually to Communities and Local Government. The group is chaired by Candy Atherton, board member of the Housing Corporation with lead responsibility for rural housing. Members include former Affordable Rural Housing Commission (ARHC) commissioners, representatives of rural interest groups such as the Commission for Rural Communities, and experts in housing delivery.
