ABSTRACT
In the previous chapter attention was given to the scale, profile and experiences of rural poverty and deprivation in England, Wales and Scotland. The three recent ‘national’ studies reviewed have each also attempted to position poverty within broader rural social, economic and cultural contexts. We only have to look at the titles of the research projects undertaken in the 1990s to see these broader objectives: Cloke et al.’s (1994, 1997a) studies were focused on rural lifestyles while Shucksmith et al. (1996a) were concerned to explore disadvantage in rural Scotland. In one respect, this broader focus can be viewed as a continuation of McLaughlin and Bradley’s concerns with deprivation in rural areas, through a consideration of key facets of rural problems relating to employment, housing, services provision and mobility. In another respect, though, this and other more recent work on rural poverty has moved beyond notions of deprivation to focus on ideas of socio-cultural marginalisation, disadvantage and social exclusion in rural areas. It is with the discussion of these latter ideas that this chapter is concerned.
