RURAL GROWTH (CHAMPIONS)?

CLA South West would like to hear from any members with the ambition to grow their businesses significantly during the next few years. 

Whether it's tourism, manufacturing, food and drink or work premises, the rural economy has the capacity to grow – and the government is encouraging us to make it happen. 

If you have the capacity and the ambition to grow, please email us some details of what you have in mind; just a paragraph or two describing the project, the location, what stage you're at and what you need to make it happen.  Specifically, we'd like to know what obstacles stand in your way. We may be able to help – or put you in touch with someone who can.  And in April we're planning a seminar and workshop to bring together our rural growth champions.

Please email us at info.southwest@cla.org.uk and put RURAL GROWTH in the subject line.

To read more about the government's Rural Economy Growth Review, click here.

In his Autumn Statement, the Chancellor of the Exchequer made several announcements concerning initiatives designed to promote economic growth in rural areas.  The CLA has warmly welcomed these and in the South West we wish to take an active roll in promoting and helping our rural economy grow.

The measures announced in the Rural Economy Growth Review (PDF 425kb) to which the CLA was a major contributor are designed to address the key rural barriers identified in the Review and help rural businesses take advantage of the opportunities available to them. They fall into five main themes.

1. Enabling Rural Businesses to Grow and Diversify (PDF 61kb) – There is no shortage of rural business start-ups and plenty of successful SMEs. However, there is evidence that these are often unable to achieve their full potential. The Government will, therefore, be targeting £100m of funding from the Rural Development Programme for England (PDF 150kb) at rural businesses; launching a competition to support up to six pilot Rural Growth Networks (PDF 60kb), with funding of around £15m, including around £2m for women-led enterprises; consulting on how to make it easier for farmers to put redundant farm buildings to appropriate alternative business uses; and taking further steps to improve rural broadband access by launching a £20m Rural Community Broadband Fund. This is on top of the £530m already being spent on superfast broadband.
2. Supporting Rural Tourism (PDF 70kb) – Tourism is one of the largest contributors to the rural economy and has great potential for further growth. The Government is, therefore, launching a major initiative, totalling £25m, to promote tourism in rural areas, including in AONBs, and to support the development of rural tourism businesses.
3. Expanding our Food and Drink Sector (PDF 53kb) – The agri-food sector is another key element of the rural economy, and the Government will be working closely with it to boost exports, promote innovation and encourage further growth, particularly amongst SMEs. A joint Government / Industry export action plan will be launched in January 2012.
4. Delivering Green Growth (PDF 73kb) – The Government is committed to Green Growth, and is launching a £15m fund to help communities tap into the renewable energy potential of rural areas, and introducing a new initiative to improve skills in the Forestry sector.
5. Reducing Regulation on Farms (PDF 71kb) – Farmers manage over 70% of the countryside, and in order to reduce red tape and stimulate growth in the industry, the Government is acting on specific recommendations in the Macdonald Review of Farming Regulation in relation to the Nitrates Directive and Earned Recognition.

A complete set of the measures can be found here (PDF 425kb). Further information about the Rural Economy Growth Review can also be found in our Frequently Asked Questions document (PDF 50kb). More detail about the individual measures will be published in due course.