New research from King's has found that remote, rural and island households in Scotland face concentrated challenges including increasing in-work poverty, fuel poverty and lone parent families becoming the dominant family type among relative low-income households in these areas.
New research from King's College London and the Scottish Government has explored the rising poverty rates in rural Scotland and found that remote, rural and island households face concentrated challenges including increasing in-work poverty, fuel poverty and lone parent families becoming the dominant family type among relative low-income households in these areas.
The report identified several key drivers behind these changing poverty rates, and implies that without targeted interventions designed to tackle these issues, Scotland will continue to face geographical inequality that will undermine Scotland's poverty reduction goals.
While rural poverty rates in Scotland temporarily rose from 13% in 2012-2015 to 18% in 2018-2021, urban areas did not follow the same trend. Policy makers have suggested a number of contributing factors to this rise, including economic instability in the lead up and aftermath of Brexit, the COVID-19 pandemic, and the war in Ukraine.
Having identified five data sets to analyse, researchers in this report wanted to establish three things:
- What are the trends and patterns of poverty in rural and island communities in Scotland since 2010?
- What are the potential drivers of these poverty trends and patterns across different rural and island communities?
- What are the implications for policy, practice and research?
Their analysis established that, while rates of poverty in urban areas have remained broadly stable, remote rural areas, including most Scottish islands and remote small towns, have experienced a marked and consistent increase in relative poverty after housing costs between 2012 and 2017. In these areas, the relative poverty rate temporarily increased from one in eight to one in five individuals. Furthermore, this increase was especially pertinent among working-age adults, whereas poverty rates for pensioners and children showed only small increases in this period.
Researchers also found that nearly 80% of fuel poor households in remote rural areas were in extreme fuel poverty in 2019 and this trend was also reflected in more recent data (2023).
"Poverty is a complex issue that can have devastating knock-on effects on a person's physical and mental wellbeing. While rates of rural poverty continue to be lower than urban areas, our report has identified significant and widening disparities in rates of poverty in rural, remote and island communities."
Professor Sharon Stevelink, Professor of Applied Epidemiology and Occupational Health at King's College London, and the report's author
The researchers put forward several drivers behind these trends, highlighting the intersectional nature of the problem. Between 2011 and 2021, remote areas saw a decline in population of working age people and home ownership, while there was an increase in the number of people renting. In parallel to this, those from rural communities also report that many public services are becoming more centralised and less accessible, while a lack of competition is driving up local costs and creating a "rural premium" that is disproportionately affecting low-income households.
Professor Stevelink continues, "There is no "quick-fix" when it comes to poverty, and our report highlights the immensely complex and interconnected nature of the challenges faced by these communities. Policy makers seeking to tackle this must recognise that without focused action that acknowledges the geographical and accessibility disparities of these communities, poverty is unlikely to be effectively addressed."
This report was funded by UK Research and Innovation Economic and Social Research Council.
Understanding the changing nature and context of poverty in Scottish rural and island communities since 2010 is available to read here.
