Rural development activities do much to shape the landscape and lives of the people of all communities within Wales. The countryside is increasingly an important resource for recreation activity and tourism as well as a living community which must function economically, socially and environmentally sustainably.
It is clear from work undertaken by the Rural Observatory that any notion of a distinct rural category and a distinct urban definition are simplistic and undoubtedly will lead to poor policy development. Rural areas are not homogenous, do on occasion exhibit similar problems as some urban areas and often have very different problems from each other.
Local authorities have a key role to play in rural development. Specifically, they:
• have a duty to promote the economic, social and environmental well-being of their communities
• have responsibilities for a range of more specific statutory and discretionary rural activities including farm waste management, strategic land management, biodiversity and the maintenance of rights of way improvement plans
• are key actors in local economic and community regeneration strategies
• have responsibility for public protection through the provision of environmental health and trading standards services
• are themselves land owners
Local Authorities have a key role in delivering the Rural Development Plan for Wales for 2007-2013. Although they are involved in activities across the whole of the Plan their main focus is on managing and delivering activities under Axis 3 of the Plan which concentrates on diversifying the rural economy. Local Authorities provide the secretariat and support for the Local Partnerships set up to deliver this part of the Plan and have developed Local Strategies to guide the delivery of activities. Local Authorities also work closely with the Local Action Groups who lead on the delivery of Axis 4 of the Plan.
The WLGA represents local government on the Rural Development Plan Programme Monitoring Committee (PMC) for Wales 2007-2013, details of our representatives as follows:
Full Member: Councillor Clive Scourfield (Carmarthenshire)
Alternate Member: Neville Davies (Carmarthenshire)
The WLGA also facilitates and supports a WLGA Rural Forum which brings together all the leaders and senior officers from the 9 rural local authorities to discuss key issues, exchange experiences and to offer the WLGA a steer and direction on all rural issues. For further details regarding the WLGA Rural Forum please see link below:
For more information contact: Lowri Gwilym