New group hopes to turn the spotlight on to the issue of rural repopulation

It follows recent Scottish Government-commissioned research by The James Hutton Institute which forecast that Scotland’s most Sparsely Populated Areas risk losing a quarter of their population by 2046 if current demographic trends continue.

The new Group was formed following a seminar on rural repopulation and renewal organised by Community Land Scotland last November and supported by the Carnegie UK Trust and Highlands and Islands Enterprise.

The Group aims to combine research and practical support to place communities at the heart of strategies to renew Sparsely Populated Areas which make up almost half of Scotland’s land area but contain less than 3% of its population.

Speaking after the Group’s first meeting in Inverness Community Land Scotland’s Policy Director, Dr Calum MacLeod said: “Our intention is to contribute to a thriving rural Scotland by helping communities to increase their populations in demographically sustainable ways.

“We already know that lots of people want to move to rural communities but that there are barriers around affordable housing, employment opportunities and access to services that prevent them from doing so.

“We’ll be working with a wide range of stakeholders to influence policy and ensure that the necessary infrastructure, services and other support mechanisms are available to enable communities to take a leading role in shaping their own futures.

“Our initial focus is on working with existing communities. We’ll also investigate how new settlements can contribute to the repopulation and renewal of rural Scotland as our work programme evolves.”