Sustainable Rural Areas

Sustainability encompasses every level of the rural community and rural living from reducing the carbon impact of rural areas to making the Farming & Food sector more profitable and therefore more able to contribute positively to important agendas. Equally our Market Towns are central to sustainable economic growth as around 50% of all economic wealth that is generated in rural areas comes from our Market Towns.

Our work builds on the Government’s Strategy for Sustainable Farming & Food where work began in 2003 has been refocused to create an inspiring new vision for Farming and Food in the Northwest.

• View the Government's Strategy for Sustainable Farming & Food
• View Inspire: Connecting Farming and Food in England’s Northwest
• Find out more about rural strategy and policy

Low Carbon Rural Region

Rural economic activity needs to make a significant contribution to the Northwest achieving its goal of becoming a low-carbon region. The Rural Development Programme for England (RDPE) offers rural businesses and rural communities the opportunity to consider and adopt the most appropriate action for its business from renewable energy to logistical and resource efficiency measures.

Businesses in the farming and food industry can become involved in opportunities such as anaerobic digestion and energy crops. Funding for energy crop initiatives is available through Axis 2 of the RDPE. Food & Drink sector strategic body Food Northwest focuses on the viability of the farming and food industry by responding to the market and promoting the Northwest’s great food offer. Food Northwest has developed a Northwest Food & Drink Strategy for the region.

• Find out more about RDPE
• Find out more about energy crop initiatives
• Find out more about the Food Northwest
• View the Northwest Food & Drink Strategy

Market Towns Initiative

The Market Towns Initiative, which was completed in March 2009, began through a joint venture between the Countryside Agency and the NWDA to rejuvenate 17 towns through a thriving local economy. The project helped create jobs and build sustainable communities.

The Initiative created 9,000 jobs, 1,800 businesses and 240,000 sq m of new business space. The initiative invested £14 million in new tourism facilities and attracted £8 million of additional public investment and over £13 million of investment from the private sector.