ABSTRACT
This chapter considers the impact of the changes on rural policing in the UK. To begin considering the issues, it continues by comparing the impacts of devolution on rural policing in Great Britain. The chapter focuses on the devolved nature of policing across the UK against a backdrop of austerity, focusing on England and Wales and Scotland. Various partnerships have been deployed to reduce feelings of isolation, contribute to feelings of community and to prevent crimes, real or imagined, from threatening the way the countryside is lived, imagined and experienced by residents and visitors. The consequences of police devolution in all its forms have yet to be evaluated in rural places. The 2015 elections witnessed the increased influence of nationalist parties in the UK, and it is likely their presence may be greater in future elections as well. As well as geographical changes, forces underwent significant changes in governance.
