THE RURAL RESETTLEMENT GROUP
THE PEOPLE WHO DID IT
Successful Community of 50
Ashilford Farm
Lowsonford Farm
From Town To Countryside
Words and Action Community
Preparations for Small Holding
Ten Years On
Getting a Small Holding
Successful Organic Growing
Retraining at 45
Pottery making in a Country Cottage
Getting the most from your Goat
Development of Craft Villages
WHERE ARE YOU GOING TO MOVE TO?
Estate Agents
Historic Buildings Bureau
Empty Houses
Smaller Towns and Villages
Local Authority Small holdings
Registering as a Small-Holding
Land Settlement Association Holdings
Rural Allotments
Land in Urban Areas
British Rail Land
Ex-Army Land
Choosing a House
Looking for Land
What type of land?
What about Soil Fertility
Is Climate Important?
Is Topography Important?
Marketing
How Much Does Land Cost?
Using the Land
WORKING THE LAND
Subsistence Gardening and Farming: A Survey
How much land for subsistence?
How much Land for 'agricultural viability'?
What kind of crops, what sort of animals?
Animals
Poultry and Ducks
Geese
Rabbits
Pigs
Sheep
Housecows
Goats
Bees
Ferrets
Tools
Agricultural Education and Training
Universities and National Colleges
Bibliography
Positive Future 2000
PF8
PF7
PF6
PF5
PF4
PF3
PF2
PF1
Other Resources I like
About the Rural Resettlement Group
The RRG was formed in 1977 to focus attention on the problems of settling in the countryside. Despite the earlier efforts of the Land for the People movement, there seemed no clearly defined group of people dedicated to making rural resettlement more than just a fantasy for dissatisfied city folk. This was odd, in view of the numbers of people going back to the countryside and the even larger number aspiring to do so. It is particularly the latter group to which the RRG is directed.
We have formulated our present position as follows: our overall aim is to stimulate and support a movement to the country-side of people who wish to live and work in sustainable rural communities on the principles of co-operation. We see ourselves primarily as an active group aiding small initiatives and pilot projects.
So far the group has undertaken the following:
- to produce a series of Handbooks. The first has had an encouraging reception and this greatly revised and improved second edition has emerged from reactions.
- to investigate planning laws and other legislation which hinder settlement in the countryside, and propose ways of modifying them. To this end we have responded to a number of discussion papers and documents on rural matters, such as Countryside Review Committee topic papers (see Reports).
- to work in an advisory capacity and give help and advice to projects which request it. At present this advice is given informally and without charge: We gave planning advice on the project for the Craft Village at Park Hall Camp in Shropshire which came within a whisker of success. Experience gained in such cases is providing valuable mat to be shared and passed on to others attempting comparable projects.
- to submit a proposal for detailed research into the field of rural resettlement. This we have done, although the Development Commission thought fit to reject our submission. We are now considering action research on a reduced scale in two areas of the country:
By holding regular meetings over the last two, years we have built up a number of useful contacts. Current members of the RRG, come from a wide variety of backgrounds; planning, education, community work, agriculture, horticulture. Discussion weekends have centred on a variety of topics - planning co-operative ventures and work are examples. Out of these weekends a group has emerged which meets more regularly and which undertakes specific projects of which the production of this, handbook is an example.
The response to the RRG has been immediate and has shown a considerable need exists for information and shared experience. We hope this new edition of the Handbook will consolidate these encouraging beginnings.
In the short term rural resettlement on a significant scale can succeed only if there are reasonable economic prospects for the new settlers. In a highly capital-intensive, industrialised economy such as Britain's, this is a tricky problem.
Until now rural resettlement has been seen as a cop-out-for the middle classes and the well-to-do. This is largely true at present, but we believe that rural resettlement should be an option for everyone, and that it also offers a partial solution to our economic and social problems, by providing a more-balanced way of life. Over the last-twenty years, the number of people working directly on the land has declined drastically. At the same time the increased industrialisation of farming has resulted in farmers turning away from local sources of service and supply with the result that fewer and fewer opportunities exist for employment associated with agriculture. This decline has been accompanied by a similar decline in most other forms of rural employment. Centralised services and industry have taken over the jobs traditionally associated with village life - the village postman shopkeeper, blacksmith etc. are already gone in many parts of the UK. Regeneration of rural life will happen only if viable work-places can be created. Because most rural re-settlers are likely to have limited capital this Handbook emphasises the advantages of combining resources; co-operation through pooled finance (which might consist of numerous individual small sums); shared facilities and skills can allow a group of people to acquire property which would otherwise lie far beyond their means.
Such an arrangement can be as communal or as individualistic as personal preference dictates. The legal frameworks section has been written with co-operative ventures in view, since they present complex problems.
Resettlement groups based upon a mixed economy of co-operative agriculture, crafts and skills will offer a more satisfactory and mutually beneficial lifestyle than individual land settlement. Since these kinds of schemes are much against the grain of modern society, it will require a great deal of effort to make them a reality. Positive links with local residents are an essential ingredient for the success of any venture - almost as important an ingredient as harmonious relations between the members of the group itself. Although some local residents will welcome the revival of interest in country activities and the countryside itself, others may feel threatened by an influx of newcomers and new ways. Great care must be taken to respect local customs and local views.
Rural resettlement implies a commitment to changing the present structure of society with its bias towards centralisation and urbanisation. However, this Handbook is concerned with information and not with the wider political implications of these issues. It is designed as a tool for those who are thinking of moving to the countryside, and for those already there. It exists in answer to a growing demand for information and help. It draws together the experience of many people and demonstrates that rural resettlement is a reality.