Local communities 'link' servce (c 9,000 members)Rural service information for Towns, Parishes, Local Organisations, Schools and Local Businesses in member areas to motivate discussion, debate and shared experience on rural service issues.
To view current Community Group members click here
Rural Service Information for parishes, schools, local organisations and businesses
We want our services to reach down to the grassroots. If a “Principal local” authority is in membership, we will provide a free community based service including a weekly publication “Rural Focus”, to all registered local councils, and their Councillors, schools, local organisations and businesses in the area of that authority. In areas where there is no supportive membership, we have to charge £60 per organisation for the equivalent service. The community service is expanding as we grow as an organisation. We are providing a free grant aid signposting service for these community members.
Community network
To see the local organisations who have become community members as a result of your main membership - please see your individual authority homepage (under the Local Community Link service). These can be accessed by clicking here
This is really important, we fervently believe that if the question about and the issues surrounding rural services are to be given due recognition, the views from every quarter need to be established.
The Network seeks to harvest information from all viewpoints and the community group with local input is a crucial part of that equation.
Only when Rural Services are seen as an overall picture will the incremental erosion by individual service consideration be halted.
Local organisation temperature taking
Through the Community Group we operate weekly links with 4,500 parishes across England. We plan a service which provides main members with periodic information on the priorities, concerns, and views of the Local Council tier. The Community Group also comprises several thousand rurally based local Schools, Local Societies and Local Businesses.
There is value in surveying for views and statistical information and using the network as strongly as we are able. We plan to undertake these surveys periodically and circulate results widely and will seek to increase these exercises as the community group establishes.
Local benchmarking service
We feel there is a really good all-round benefit from the introduction of a local benchmarking service allowing Towns and larger Parishes to be able to compare and contrast their position across a range of service areas with similar local councils. We plan to introduce such a service over the next year. There will have to be a small charge involved here for the Town and Parishes who wish to participate but we do feel such a service will give very considerable value for money for this tier of authority and there will be a discount for the local councils who are members of the Community Group.
Over time if monies are available we would like to extend this intended service still further to allow some area comparisons. i.e. market towns areas.
