South East England

South East England has a high quality landscape, with the highest proportion of land covered by national or international designations of any English region, and the highest proportion of woodland.  It attractiveness, geography and economic success mean that it is subject to substantial development pressures, although 90% of its land mass remains undeveloped.

Most people in the region recognise that they enjoy a high quality of life.  Economic growth and associated development has been a necessary condition for prosperity and social and environmental action.  However there are real concerns about resource consumption and the pattern of current growth and behaviours that is unsustainable in the long term.

Our five priorities for the rural areas of the South East are:

• more economically dynamic and socially inclusive villages and market towns
• increased business competitiveness in rural areas through entrepreneurship and enterprise
• dynamic food, farming and forestry sectors enhancing and exploiting the countryside’s assets and with increased adaptability and resilience
• increased value of premium local products from South East land-based industries, with effective supply chains
• the quality and biodiversity of the landscape preserved and enhanced, providing high quality life-style offer to those who work, live and visit it

Although the region is adjacent to London it has no single dominant urban centre.  There are only cities with populations of around 250,000 [Medway and Brighton & Hove].

More than 80% of the region is classified as ‘rural’ where more than 1 in 4 of the population live.  The region has more than 170 small rural towns (with a population of less than 20,000) and more than 1,400 villages.  

The region has considerable built heritage assets with thousands of historic buildings in urban and rural communities as well as castles, country houses and gardens.

More than 40% of the region is covered by protective designations, which include Green Belt: Sites of Special Scientific Interest: a National Park: and Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty.  There is some overlap with these different designations but nearly 33% of the region is recognised as having national quality landscapes.  There is great variety in landscapes with chalk down-land; clay vales; woodlands and heaths. A second National park is under consideration.

 

A National Park designation in the UK recognises the importance of an area for both its landscape and recreational use, and places strict controls on land use – but the land itself remains in private ownership, and eligible for European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development support.

Woods cover 14% of the land surface of the region – far more than the national average, some of it in urban areas and much of it on farms.  The South East region has the four most wooded counties in England and 40% of England’s semi-natural ancient woodland.

There are more than 100,000 businesses [over 40% of the region’s businesses] that are based in rural areas but less than a third of these are land-based businesses.  Some 70% of the region is farmed.  It is farming and forestry that manage and maintain the countryside and are essential to maintain and manage the quality landscapes that give this region its competitive edge.  There are 23,000 farm holdings in the region with around  10,000 full-time and around 17,500 part-time farmers. The South East ranks second in England for the number of horticulture businesses and for the total number of people employed on farms but it has the highest number of seasonal workers.

The European Regional Development Programme for England (RDPE)

The region will use the opportunity of new RDPE funding to deliver regional objectives.

In England the Regional Development Agencies will have the main responsibility for delivery of both Axis 1, Axis 3 and Axis 4, working with Natural England and the Forestry Commission to ensure integration of activities across the Axes.  There will therefore be eight regional programmes in England.  The South East England Development Agency (SEEDA) will deliver these Axes for the South East region and also deliver the programme for small rural areas in the London region. 

Support for Axis 2 is delivered by Natural England and the Forestry Commission.  The Natural England activities are managed across the whole of England and targeted nationally, but the Forestry Commission elements are managed regionally. The maximum possible allocation of European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development funding in England to Axis 2 (80%) will inevitably reduce the flexibility of moving EAFRD co-funding between Axes 1 and 3

Summary of RDPE Axes

Axis 1  Improving the competitiveness of the agricultural, horticultural and forestry sectors
Axis 2  Improving the environment and the countryside
Axis 3  Improving the quality of life in rural areas and encouraging diversification

Summary of RDPE priorities in the South East

• Improved landscape management and biodiversity, particularly in the nationally designated landscape areas
• Addressing climate change and developing renewable energy
• Adding value to food and non-food products
• Improving the management of woodlands in order to develop their economic and biodiversity value
• Rural tourism and other forms of diversification 
• Improving the efficiency and profitability of livestock farming, and improving animal health and welfare
• Improving water resources management
• Developing skills and the uptake of latest technology  
• Encouraging innovation and entrepreneurship, including collaboration across supply chains in the development of new products, technologies and markets
• Developing the “capacity” of rural communities via Leader
  

General data:

Country:	England
Total area:	1.909.600
Population:	8.100.000
Density:	424 hab/km2
Agriculture land use:	61.9 %
Arable land:	43 %
Main economic activities:	Manufacturing, Services and Tourism
Main agricultural products:	Cereal, Beef and Sheep, Horticulture

South East England
Represented by Surrey County Council
Contact: Mr D. Davis