Rural England
Fuel poverty
Key points
- The proportion of households who are in fuel poverty is much higher in the most rural areas: an average of 27% over the years 2005 to 2007 compared to 15% in village centres, 11% in rural residential areas and 10% in urban areas.
- As rates of fuel poverty fell between 2001 and 2003, it was those living in the most rural areas that benefited the most in both absolute (down 13 percentage points) and relative (down by half) terms. As the rates of fuel poverty rose between 2004 and 2007, it was again those living in the most rural areas that were most affected in absolute terms (up 18 percentage points). In relative terms, however, the rise have been similar in all types of area (roughly doubling in each case).
- See the UK indicator on fuel poverty.
Graph 1: Compared to urban
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Graph 2: Over time
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Rural/urban ratios (urban = 10)
On most poverty and social exclusion indicators, rural areas have 'better scores' than urban areas. The purpose of the table below is to differentiate between those subjects where rural areas are 'a bit better' and those where rural areas are 'a lot better'. It does so by presenting the rural statistics for the indicator as a proportion of the urban statistics. So, for example, a rural 'score' of 6 in the table below means that the rural statistic is around 60% of its urban equivalent.
| The most rural areas | 28 |
|---|---|
| Village centres | 15 |
| Rural residential | 11 |
Definitions and data sources
The graphs
The first graph shows the proportion of households deemed to be in 'fuel poverty'. Households are considered to be in 'fuel poverty' if they would have to spend more than 10% of their household income on fuel to keep their home in a 'satisfactory' condition, where, for example, a 'satisfactory' heating regime is considered to be one where the main living area is at 21 degrees centigrade with 18 degrees centigrade in the other occupied rooms. It is thus a measure which compares income with what the fuel costs should be rather than what they actually are. Household income is disposable household income before deducting housing costs. The fuel costs included comprise that used for space heating, water heating, lighting, cooking and household appliances.
The second graph shows how the proportion of households deemed to be in 'fuel poverty' has changed over the last few years.
Level of the data
Small area urban/rural classifications, where the surveyor of the property allocates it to one of six categories, three of which are rural. Note that this classification is specific to the English House Condition Survey and is not the same as the government's 2004 classification system for small areas.
Source
English House Condition Survey, DCLG. To improve its statistical reliability, the data in the first graph is the average for the latest three years.
The numbers
| Type of area | 2001 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | Average for the latest three years |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rural residential | 8% | 6% | 6% | 7% | 12% | 14% | 11% |
| Village centre | 13% | 9% | 8% | 12% | 15% | 17% | 15% |
| The most rural areas | 27% | 14% | 13% | 22% | 31% | 28% | 27% |
| Rural (combined) | 12% | 8% | 7% | 11% | 16% | 17% | 14% |
| Urban | 8% | 5% | 6% | 6% | 10% | 12% | 10%% |