Families in rural areas are spending almost one third of their income on rent according to research by the Institute of Public Policy Research.

A family with one child, and earning one full-time and one part-time median wage in a mainly or largely rural area, is spending 31 per cent of their income on rent.

Only eight per cent of the housing stock in rural areas is affordable, compared with 20 per cent in urban areas, and current delivery is failing to provide enough new homes. In their report published to mark Rural Housing Week the IPPR found there is an affordability “crisis” in rural areas where the average house price is £320,700, more than £87,000 higher than the urban average outside of London.