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Our new report ‘Rural Financial Poverty: Priorities for action’ shows that the proportion of rural households in relative poverty rose from 16% to 19% between 2004 and 2007 - the equivalent of 1.6 million people in 2007.

Around 20% of children and pensioners in rural areas were living in poverty in 2007, as well as one in six working-age adults. The increasing proportion of children living in poor working households and the dramatic rise in the proportion of pensioners living in poverty are particularly striking.

‘Rural Financial Poverty: Priorities for action’ provides a rural perspective to help inform policy makers and practitioners working to reduce financial poverty. It presents the latest statistical evidence of the scale and depth of rural financial poverty and recommends priorities for action to guide their work.

The companion paper ‘Rural Financial Poverty: Good practice’ describes how an increasing number of people living in rural communities are working with local and regional partners to develop innovative solutions to address poverty in rural England.

We're presenting the key findings of ‘Rural Financial Poverty: Priorities for action’ at a Houses of Parliament hosted by Philip Dunne MP, Chair of the All Party Parliamentary Group on Rural Services. Stuart Burgess, our chair and the Government's Rural Advocate, will present the report’s key findings.

Download ‘Rural Financial Poverty: Priorities for action’

Read the companion paper ‘Rural Financial Poverty: Good practice’