What we said about Norfolk – Rural Challenges

Sue Jewkes, Audit Commission

www.direct.gov.uk/oneplace

oneplace – where it all comes together

CAA is an assessment from all of the regulators working together

CAA is about places and peopleCAA it focuses on the key issuesCAA will help local partners improve quality

of life in their areaCAA will provide an independent view of

whether people are getting value for money from their local services

CAA includes an assessment of individual public sector organisations

www.direct.gov.uk/oneplace

oneplace – where it all comes together

Norfolk is a good place to livePeople are healthy, have jobs, and enjoy high quality countryside, coast and townsLocal services are generally good and local organisations are doing well overallThe story is generally positive But not everyone has such an enjoyable lifestyle – there are big differences across the countyThere are some things that are not working well – and some that could be betterOneplace tells this story in easy to understand language – allowing people to dig deeper if they want to

www.direct.gov.uk/oneplace

oneplace – the rural story

www.direct.gov.uk/oneplace

•To ensure that our assessment had a local flavour – we reported our findings under the themes of the Local Area Agreement, which identified Norfolk priorities.•These are

•Thriving Economy•Improving Skills and fulfilling aspirations•Improving Housing•Environmental Sustainability•Stronger Communities•Safer Communities•Supporting Independence•Improving Health and Well Being

•Each of these had a rural dimension

The economy

Wages are still very low – < £10,000 – many of these are in rural areasThis makes it difficult for them to find somewhere to livePeople do not always enjoy the same high quality of life as others elsewhere in NorfolkLocal skills levels are low – 12.7% have no qualifications – probably higher in rural areas - progress to improve skills levels has been slow

Access to skills training can be difficultWe commented that a lot of investment has gone into physical regeneration in GY, Norwich and KLEconomic development and regeneration activity has been less in rural areasIIC money has mainly been directed towards urban areas

*An area of focus year 2

Improving skills and fulfilling aspirations – how do you change the culture of learning?Basic skills levels are low – this is recognised as a problemFocus to date has been on young people – with some success: GCSE, NEET etc.CYP could do better at schoolWe haven’t analysed school performance in rural areas – could be relevantHow easy is it to get access to childcare and early years education in rural area?

•The number of young people getting higher level qualifications is improving but remains low•Kickstart continues to be successful – but what next?•Not everyone wants their teenagers riding a moped – needs other solutions•LSC withdrawal of funding – damaging to Norfolk’s aspirations – Paston is a feeder for many rural communities

*We expect to see significant progress in the next year – as small changes are not enough

Improving housing

Affordable housing is very important to local peopleNot enough new or affordable homes to meet demandMany people on the waiting list will never get housed

Problem is worse in rural areasSecond home ownership has meant local young people have to move outRural communities become less sustainable as schools, shops etc close

12,000 empty homes – many of these will be in rural areas - districts not been good at bringing them back into usePrivate housing needs to be better – especially for older peopleAffordable warmth is a priority - but making this happen across a largely rural population is not happening effectively

*We will be watching this area next year

Environmental sustainability

Norfolk has a high quality natural environment – much of this is in rural areas – and a lot of effort goes into identifying and protecting what makes Norfolk specialIt is not so obvious what efforts go into protecting and sustaining the communities of people who live in these areas

The communities living in areas affected by coastal change have not been effectively supported

National policies have not been joined upLocal leaders have had to fight hard for recognition

*We will be delving deeper in this area next year

Stronger Communities - this is what we said

Around 60% of people live in a rural community in NorfolkThey suffer as much disadvantage as those in more urban areas – but it is harder to measureGovernment grants and schemes have mainly been targeted at places such as GY, Norwich, Thetford & KLOSCI research findings are stark – but what happens next?Tackling rural issues seems to be an ‘add-on’ and not part of normal business in NorfolkWhat exactly is ‘rural proofing’?Transport has improved – but remains a problem

*We will be following up on rural issues

Safer communities

•It is a safe place to live and crime is falling•Fear of crime higher than it should be (the worried well?)•But there are variations – some areas experience higher crime than others•The majority of crime is not in rural areas – but people still want more Police presence•If we expect our Police to provide value for money – we would also expect that they would focus on the crime hot spots•Switching CDRP funding from rural to urban areas is not popular•It may not be about equal services – but about the right services

Supporting independence (1)

*Continuing to monitor progress in this area

•An aging rural population is a challenge•People want to be able to live independently at home as long as possible•But they often need support to do this – and this is where the challenge lies•It is not realistic nor necessarily appropriate to roll out the same support services across the whole county•Things need to be done differently – mobile working, integrated teams, better use of technology•Organisations need to work much better together•This means stopping some things

Supporting independence (2)

•Transport and access to basic services continues to be a problem especially for older people – there is no blank cheque – but there needs to be smarter options•Too many people still end up dying in hospital when they want to be at home – how many of these are in rural areas where it is just too difficult to get them the appropriate levels of support?•We know that there is better support for carers in Norfolk than previously (although they still need better access to respite care) – but do we know how effectively carers needs are being met in rural communities when they is more chance of being isolated?

Improving health and well being

*Continuing to monitor the effectiveness of the health economy

•Norfolk is a health place to live with good life expectancy•Inequalities are masked – 19 year difference •Health is generally better in the rural population than the urban one•Access to healthcare is more difficult•New and innovative solutions are needed – such as mobile dentistry•IT could offer some solutions – but only if the IT infrastructure such as high speed broadband is in place•Focus for year 2 – out of hours cover and ambulance response times – just what is reasonable to expect in more rural communities?

Area Assessment – national focus

•Cross inspectorate workshop to discuss rural issues •Regular forum to bring together emerging findings nationally•Will continue to look into lack of rural data to inform policy•Spending in rural/urban areas•Access to services•Access to Broadband