ABSTRACT
This chapter explores the village as something that emerges as problematic in interwar Britain: a part of the nation that was valued, yet was considered at risk, and whose future was up for debate. In examining the imagined futures of village life in the interwar period, the chapter identifies two particular themes of interest. The first is welfare, which is interpreted broadly as incorporating aspects of amenity and quality of life, and practical attention to basic aspects of health, living conditions and support for those in physical or economic difficulties. The second theme addresses the place of the village within discourses of planning – a topic with ramifications far beyond the experience of the village itself. Maison's village achieve a harmony between different historical elements: the historical buildings that contributed to the traditional image of rural life, and the modern accretions that were necessary if the village was to move with the times and meet the needs of modernity.
