Housing in rural areas, and particularly the availability of affordable housing, is a critical issue, and a key issue for the CRC. We undertook a wide-ranging Housing Inquiry during 2005 to gather the views and experiences of the people living and working in rural areas about housing. 

Other recent research and evaluations includes research on the housing and support needs of older people’s housing, affordable and supported housing in national parks, research to calculate the housing needs of rural England and an evaluation into the use by rural authorities, of the extra resources, from the reduced council tax discount on second homes.  Drawing on all the above, in our submission to Defra's ARHC we called for:

• More effective rural proofing of housing policies at all levels
• An increase in, and better targeting of, resources to meet rural needs for affordable homes
• More flexible planning policies which enable villages to grow and adapt to meet their changing economic and social circumstances
• Empowered local communities who are involved in shaping their own solutions and have a real stake in their future.