Scots in rural areas living in ‘quiet crisis’ because of unfair costs – study

The Scottish Government is being challenged to act on “unfair” costs that can drive poverty in Scotland’s rural communities – with the plea coming as campaigners warn many people in such areas “live in quiet crisis”.

David Reilly, of the Poverty Alliance, said while Scotland had “postcard perfect landscapes” these can sometimes hide the “true scale of rural hardship”.

He spoke out on the issue as the organisation published a report, looking at the lessons learned from a three-year project looking at the additional costs that people living in rural communities have to pay for everyday necessities such as food, transport, heating, childcare and health and social care.

The report will be presented to public finance minister Hannah Mary Goodlad, also the MSP for Shetland, when she visits the project at the Royal Highland Show outside Edinburgh on Friday.

It states that the “rural poverty premium isn’t just about needing more money to access a good standard of living, it is about additional time to travel, or to navigate services not designed for rural communities, or where the opportunities – for jobs, education and leisure, are more limited”.

It also highlighted how “for everyone in rural Scotland” the cost of fuel is “an ongoing challenge”.

The report said: “In Aberdeenshire, people told us of the spiralling costs of heating rural homes, exacerbated by the need to buy home heating oil in bulk. For many, it is a choice between being warm or fed.”

Together with the Grampian Credit Union, the Taking Action on Rural Poverty (Tarp) project tested the potential for interest-free loans for home heating oil.

Mr Reilly, communications and networks manager for the Poverty Alliance, said: “The true scale of rural hardship can sometimes be masked by postcard-perfect landscapes.

“But our Tarp project has uncovered how many people living in our countryside are facing a steep, unjust premium just to go about their daily lives.

“People love living rurally but that shouldn’t come at a cost. Many live in quiet crisis.”

He continued: “When you are forced to pay extra for transport, rely on the most expensive off-grid heating, and have virtually no local childcare, a normal life can become unaffordable – especially when you are on a low income already.

“These poverty premiums drain money, time, and opportunity away from rural communities.

“Our project shows how the Scottish Government, local authorities, and other rural partners can work together to dismantle these unfair rural costs.”

Jane Paterson was part of a citizen’s panel that worked with the Tarp project to create photo storyboards highlighting the issues facing rural communities that will be shown to the finance minister.

Ms Paterson said: “People in cities don’t realise how quickly everything adds up out here, and how choice is a luxury we don’t have.

“If the local bus only runs twice a day, you have to keep a car, which means you are entirely at the mercy of fuel prices just to get your kids to school or buy groceries.

“Our photo storyboards aren’t just art projects – they are a glimpse into the constant, exhausting calculations we have to make every single day just to keep our heads above water.

“We hope the minister looks at our stories and understands that we aren’t asking for handouts; we are asking for a fair chance to live in our own communities without being financially penalised for it.”

The Scottish Government has been contacted for comment.