External links
- ACRE
- Cheshire Community Action
- Countryside Agency
- DEFRA
- Rural Community Council of Essex
- Community Lincs
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The rural community councils (RCCs) were established in rural England during the twentieth century to promote rural community life.
Each shire county now has one, although some are relative newcomers. The RCCs also form a national coalition called Action with Communities in Rural England ("ACRE").
Each RCC is an independent, locally managed organisation but is dependent on external funding for its continued work. Historically, RCCs were primarily funded by the Rural Development Commission, but this role was subsequently taken over by the Countryside Agency. Most RCCs are also funded through project work linked to their aims and objectives, and from work undertaken for their closely related county-wide organisations representing parish councils and playing field committees.
Community councils in Scotland and Wales are different and exist on a statutory basis.
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The Countryside Agency was a statutory body set up in England in 1999 with the task of improving the quality of the rural environment and the lives of those living in it. The Agency was formed by merging the Countryside Commission and the Rural Development Commission. Its powers were inherited from those bodies.
English Nature was the United Kingdom government agency that promoted the conservation of wildlife, geology and wild places throughout England between 1990 and 2006. It was a non-departmental public body funded by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) and gave statutory advice, grants and issued licences.
The Countryside Council for Wales, a Welsh Government Sponsored Body, was, until 31 March 2013, the wildlife conservation, landscape and countryside access authority for Wales. It was merged with Forestry Commission Wales, and Environment Agency Wales to form Natural Resources Wales, a single body managing Wales's environment and natural resources, on 1 April 2013.
In general, a rural area or countryside is a geographic area that is located outside towns and cities. The Health Resources and Services Administration of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services defines the word rural as encompassing "...all population, housing, and territory not included within an urban area. Whatever is not urban is considered rural."
A parish council is a civil local authority found in England and is the lowest tier of local government. They are elected corporate bodies, have variable tax raising powers, and are responsible for areas known as civil parishes, serving in total 16 million people. A parish council may decide to call itself a Town Council Village Council, Community Council, Neighbourhood Council, or if the parish has city status, the parish council may call itself a City Council. However the powers and duties of the parish council are the same whatever name it carries.
CPRE, the countryside charity, formerly known as the Campaign to Protect Rural England, is a charity in England with over 40,000 members and supporters. Formed in 1926 by Sir Patrick Abercrombie to limit urban sprawl and ribbon development, the CPRE claims to be one of the longest running environmental groups. CPRE campaigns for a "sustainable future" for the English countryside. They state it is "a vital but undervalued environmental, economic and social asset to the nation." They aim to "highlight threats and promote positive solutions." They campaign using their own research to lobby the public and all levels of government.
The pattern of local government in England is complex, with the distribution of functions varying according to the local arrangements.
In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government below districts and counties, or their combined form, the unitary authority. Civil parishes can trace their origin to the ancient system of ecclesiastical parishes which historically played a role in both civil and ecclesiastical administration; civil and religious parishes were formally split into two types in the 19th century and are now entirely separate. The unit was devised and rolled out across England in the 1860s.
Kent County Council is a county council that governs most of the county of Kent in England. It is the upper tier of elected local government, below which are 12 district councils, and around 300 town and parish councils. The county council has 84 elected councillors. The chief executive and chief officers are responsible for the day-to-day running of the council. Roger Gough is the leader of the council as of October 2019. Kent County Council is currently controlled by the Conservative Party and the official opposition is the Liberal Democrats with 7 seats. It is one of the largest local authorities in England in terms of population served and the largest local authority of its type.
In the United Kingdom, regional development agencies (RDAs) were nine non-departmental public bodies established for the purpose of development, primarily economic, of England's Government Office regions between 1998 and 2010. There was one RDA for each of the NUTS level 1 regions of England. Similar activities were carried out in Wales by the Welsh Government Department of Economy and Transport, in Northern Ireland by the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Investment and in Scotland by Scottish Enterprise and Highlands and Islands Enterprise.
A community council is a public representative body in Great Britain.
The National Federation of Young Farmers' Clubs (NFYFC) is a rural youth organisation in the United Kingdom. The Federation covers various Young Farmers' Clubs (YFCs) throughout England and Wales, helping support young people in agriculture and the countryside. It does not include YFCs from Scotland or Ireland.
Rape crisis centers (RCCs) are community-based organizations affiliated with the anti-rape movement that work to help victims of rape, sexual abuse, and sexual violence. Central to a community's rape response, RCCs provide a number of services, such as victim advocacy, crisis hotlines, community outreach, and education programs. As social movement organizations, they seek to change social beliefs and institutions, particularly in terms of how rape is understood by medical and legal entities and society at large. There is a great deal of diversity in terms of how RCCs are organized, which has implications for their ideological foundations, roles in their communities, and the services they offer.
The South West of England Regional Development Agency (SWRDA) was one of the nine Regional Development Agencies set up by the United Kingdom government in 1999. Its purpose was to lead the development of a sustainable economy in South West England, investing to unlock the region's business potential. It was abolished along with all the other RDAs on 31 March 2012, with some of its functions being replaced by local enterprise partnerships.
The history of local government in England is one of gradual change and evolution since the Middle Ages. England has never possessed a formal written constitution, with the result that modern administration is based on precedent, and is derived from administrative powers granted to older systems, such as that of the shires.
Norfolk Rural Community is a charity that operates in the county of Norfolk, England. Its aim is "to support and work with rural communities through active partnerships to sustain and improve the quality of life for the people of Norfolk."
Action with Communities in Rural England (ACRE) is a registered charity which represents thirty-eight member groups who make up England's largest rural network. The charity claims to engage 52,000 grassroots organisations in 11,000 rural communities.
Following the 2010 United Kingdom general election, the UK Government announced plans to curb public spending through the abolition of a large number of quasi-autonomous non-governmental organisations (quangos). On 23 May 2010, Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne unveiled a £500million plan to reduce the budget deficit by abolishing or merging many quangos. This was styled in the national press as a "bonfire of the quangos", making reference to Girolamo Savonarola's religiously inspired Bonfire of the Vanities. The cuts and closures received criticism in some quarters, but was generally welcomed by the business community.
Rural Alliances is an international project funded by the European Union through the Interreg North West Europe European Regional Development Fund IVB funding scheme aimed at bringing rural businesses together with their communities to stimulate local economies and services.
The White Cliffs Countryside Partnership was established in 1989, to help landowners care for the special coast and countryside of Dover and Folkestone and Hythe districts. This includes the only two stretches of Heritage Coast in Kent; the Dover-Folkestone Heritage Coast and the South Foreland Heritage Coast between Dover and Kingsdown near Deal.