9:03am Sunday 20th July 2008
PEOPLE living in rural parts of Surrey generally enjoy healthier lifestyles and a better quality of life - but at a price.
The Commission for Rural Communities' (CRC) latest state of the countryside report has highlighted that the county's countryside residents are being squeezed by higher house prices and lower wages, with increasing inequality.
The latest report - the tenth since the series started in 1999 - aims to provide the definitive picture of rural England.
This year it highlights a rise in households living in poverty and a growing inequality between remote rural areas and other parts of the countryside.
The report is used by the CRC to fulfil its advisory role to the Government and others so that the needs and circumstances of rural communities are represented more fully, and rural people are not disadvantaged by where they live.
CRC chairman Dr Stuart Burgess said: "While there are many advantages to living and working in rural parts of Surrey, there remain some significant challenges.
"The quality of life may often be better in rural areas but this is not the case everywhere and for everyone."
This year's report uses the official Households Below Average Income data to show that between 2004-05 and 2006-07 poverty increased faster in rural households than urban ones.
Around one in five rural households across England now live below the poverty line.
Wages for people working in rural areas continue to be low and, for many, work is not a secure route out of poverty.
Meeting affordable housing needs in rural areas also remains a challenge with demand heightened because of people seeking to relocate to the countryside.
In 2007 the average rural house price in Surrey villages was £489,936 - 13.3 times annual household income, compared with 9.5 times in urban areas in the county.
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