Needs of rural youngsters 'taking second place to urban priorities'

CHILDREN growing up in the UK’s rural and semi-rural areas are being “systematically failed” by an education system built around the needs of urban Britain, MPs have warned.

- LEWIS CLARKE [e-mail]

A lack of transport, digital infrastructure and targeted funding is leaving young people in the countryside cut off from opportunity - and often from the classroom itself.

The stark warnings came during a debate held in Westminster Hall on Wednesday, May 7, where Members of Parliament from across the political divide highlighted the growing educational disparities between urban and rural communities.

Edward Morello, Liberal Democrat MP for West Dorset (pictured inset), opened the debate with a clear message: “It should not be controversial to say that children and young people deserve an equal start in life, regardless of whether they grow up in a city, suburb or small rural village. But for those growing up in semi-rural or rural constituencies such as West Dorset, there are persistent and systematic barriers that too often get overlooked in national policy.”

Mr Morello pointed to a raft of structural disadvantages that disproportionately affect rural families, starting with transport - or the lack of it. With bus services in parts of Dorset disappearing, many students face real struggles just getting to school. Government funding, he noted, has been uneven, with Dorset receiving just £3.8 million for its bus service improvement plan - the lowest in the South West and less than a third of the amount allocated to neighbouring Devon.