The Country Land and Business Association, which represents landowners, farmers and rural businesses, has named the Isle of Wight as one of the top 10 counties in England for running a rural business.
The CLA Rural Business County League Table scores each county on some of the main criteria which can support or challenge rural firms. These include the extent of broadband and mobile coverage; adoption of local plans by planning authorities; opportunities for development of rural skills; and entrepreneurial dynamism.
Top of the league table was Cheshire, with Oxfordshire and Cumbria in equal second place. The Isle of Wight was in eighth place, reflecting its success in the creation of new rural businesses, with a rating of 7.1 out of 10, and its planning environment.
CLA Regional Director South East Robin Edwards said:
“Operating in a rural area brings opportunities but also challenges and there is much that can be done to help them to succeed. The table shines a light on some of the main factors that can help a business succeed and the best performing counties were those that rated most consistently across a range of specific elements.
“Top of the list is connectivity; almost any type of business can operate from a rural area if they have good quality mobile and internet connection. This is an issue for the Isle of Wight, which has a rating of just 6.4 out of 10 for 3G coverage across the Island as a whole and 9.5 out of 15 for superfast broadband. Unfortunately getting the coverage that a business needs remains a postcode lottery and too many businesses are losing out. We need government, councils and network providers to focus on delivery especially in our most remote areas.
“A growing businesses often needs space or to update existing buildings and facilities. This can be frustrated by poorly managed planning systems. Our table rates the performance of planning authorities on whether they have a Local Plan in place and whether they are permitting or refusing applications to convert and change buildings”.
On the Isle of Wight, the planning environment rated highly, with a rating of 10 out of 10 for local plans.
The table also reveals new survey results commissioned by the CLA on local preferences for using rural businesses. Loyalty towards local producers of food, drink and other items and a preference for using locally-based cafes, farm shops and leisure activities can play an important part in the success of rural firms. Across the South East, including the Isle of Wight, there is significant room for improvement, with a preference rating for using local products of 5.6 out of 10, compared to 9.2 in the South West.
Robin Edwards added:
“There are clearly a number of other factors that influence how hospitable or challenging a county is for rural businesses, including its geography and infrastructure, which for the Isle of Wight means businessess incur additional costs in accessing customers. In addition, there are issues of flood risk, soil type and levels of rural crime. Our league table has been compiled to give a snapshot of some of the common challenges faced by rural businesses, not a comprehensive analysis, and it highlights the degree to which a supportive environment can help them operate and grow.”
