We've done a number of pieces of work looking at the rollout, availability and usage of broadband and ICTs in rural communities across England, including a Best Practice Guide looking at 12 examples of community and other broadband schemes and Beyond Digital Divides: the future for ICTs in rural areas looking at the future of ICTs in rural communities.

Under our rural watchdog role we also report annually on broadband availability and take-up in our State of the Countryside report, and in the past we've examined this in our Rural Proofing reports.

The issue was also raised in the Report of the Rural Advocate produced by our chair Stuart Burgess.

Our current focus is about the dangers for rural communities and businesses of the re-opening of a digital divide at higher bandwidths, especially so soon after the great success of ‘closing’ the gap for first generation broadband. 

A new Digital Divide could have particularly strong impacts on the disadvantaged in rural areas as there will be an increasing reliance on the web to access training and jobs as physical services are replaced.

As part of our work on digital inclusion we've been tasked with providing a rural perspective to the government's Digital Britain report. Our report will raise the rural issues surrounding digital inclusion and highlight recommendations for Lord Carter’s final Digital Britain report.

Find out more about our work on digital inclusion