It’s Village Halls Week from Monday 25th to Friday 29th January – and village halls across England are being encouraged to sign an online record to mark 100 years of rural community action.
Many of you reading this will know about ThinkingFuel, our collective heating oil buying scheme. And you’ll know that the aim is to help support householders across Norfolk who depend on heating oil to heat their homes, and for whom the unregulated cost of heating oil is a constant worry.
Our CANConnect initiative works with partner agencies across the North Norfolk district of Norfolk and Waveney CCG (Clinical Commissioning Group) to help connect people with activities in their locality, as well as providing individuals with one-to-one support in identifying and achieving their personal goals. CANConnect also provides support for the community itself, helping organisations and people make the places where we live stronger, friendlier, and more resilient.
The Arts and Culture sector is an important element in the VCSE fraternity, in the context of community engagement and outreach, and addressing local health issues such as social isolation and loneliness. Natalie Jode, Executive Director at Creative Arts East, has seen the impact of the pandemic on operational capability and capacity across the county.
Affordable housing is at the heart of helping rural communities thrive and survive. In this, Rural Housing Week, we are looking at why affordable housing is needed and why it’s important for residents to be involved.
There are around 10,000 village halls across England and many are crucially important to local communities, but their upkeep and improvements cost money.
MPs on the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee have highlighted the impact poor broadband and mobile continues to have on rural communities and businesses.
The National Rural Crime Network (NRCN) has published a report into domestic abuse in rural Britain, the result of an 18-month intensive research project.