ruralnet|uk news

Defra and Commission for Rural Communities Supporting ruralnet|2006

ruralnet|uk today were able to confirm a total of 60 sponsored places have been made available at the annual rural development conference ruralnet|2006, for delegates from rural voluntary and community groups across England and Wales.

Department for Environment, Food, and Rural Affairs (Defra) and the Commission for Rural Communities (CRC) have agreed to sponsor 30 places each.

Commission for Rural Communities to sponsor conference places

Rural regeneration charity, ruralnet|uk are pleased to confirm that 30 places at their annual conference, ‘ruralnet|2006 - Exploiting Your Rural Capital’ have been sponsored by The Commission for Rural Communities so that voluntary sector groups can be represented.

This is the 4th year that this high-profile event in the rural regeneration field has been supported by the Commission for Rural Communities. The event also attracts support from regional development agencies, the national government and rural communities themselves. 

The Woodlands and Forestry Forum is Growing Our Future online

A new website for the West Midlands Forestry Framework (WMFF), designed by ruralnet|uk, is going live today.

Designed by the rural regeneration charity, ruralnet|uk, the website will showcase the framework and delivery plans for woodland and forestry in the West Midlands.  Details about the framework - including briefings, studies, etc - are available from this site in downloadable pdf. format.

The website address is: http://www.growingourfuture.org/

Chris Boardman to join Participation Ride on 2/6/06

Olympic Gold Medallist, Chris Boardman, has signed up for Stage 7 of the ruralnet|uk Participation Ride from John O'Groats to Land's End.

Starting on 29 May, Simon Berry, the Chief Executive of ruralnet|uk, will attempt a 10-day bike-athon from Land's End to John O'Groats to raise money for the charity's Participation Fund. The Participation Fund will provide free support to people involved in rural voluntary action. It will give volunteers free access to ruralnet|uk's online services (Experts Online, xPRESS Digest and many others) and enable more community activists to participate in ruralnet|uk's annual conference.

ruralnet|conference organisers say "on yer bike"!

The annual conference, ruralnet|2006 will this year be held at Center Parcs Sherwood Forest in Nottinghamshire. 

Delegates will be treated to professional event facilities set in nature reserve setting in the midst of 4 hundred acres of natural woodland.  The venue brings together some important considerations for rural development professionals, including rural tourism, sustainable transport, use of local suppliers and produce, diversifying rural business, employment (Center Parcs Sherwood employs 1500 people), and cross sector working.

Be part of a long distance bicycle ride without moving from your chair

Thanks to ‘blogs’ and GPS (global positioning systems) you can be a part of a 9-day dash from Land's End to John O'Groats. Just sit and watch and be pleased it's not your knees going round and round, or contribute at www.simonberry.net

Exploiting Rural Capital to be the Theme for ruralnet|2006

'Exploiting Your Rural Capital - New Perspectives on Rural Assets' will be the theme for ruralnet|2006.

Hosted by rural regeneration charity, ruralnet|uk, the annual conference is to be held in the East Midlands on 11-12 October, with support from East Midlands Development Agency (emda).  The event will debate the importance of community, as well as economic resources for sustainability and social inclusion.

This year's supplement: 'Building Capitals for Communities' will focus on the experiences of market towns in the East Midlands as the foundation for rural regeneration.

VCS organisations try out collaborative tools for effective event planning

The I-See-T collaboration project continued with its first Hands-on workshop exploring the use of a variety of web based tools to help with planning and reporting ‘effective & efficient events’.

During the workshop attendees learnt more about the different online tools available and tried out some of these tools. The afternoon was devoted to starting weblogs (or ‘blogs’) that can be used, amongst many other things, to quickly and easily publicise and report on events.

East Midlands Development Agency to Sponsor ruralnet|2006 Conference

East Midlands Development Agency (emda) is sponsoring the ruralnet|2006 conference.

Rural regeneration charity ruralnet|uk are pleased to confirm that the annual event will be held in the East Midlands region on 10th-12th October 2006.

Held in a different location annually, the ruralnet|conference is now in its sixth successful year.  This is the first time the event will be held in the East Midlands.  Venue and programme details are soon to be announced.

Active Learning Initiative launched at Stoneleigh Park with a Pancake Race

A pancake race marked the official launch of the Active Learning Companies Project in Warwickshire.

The event was organised by Warwickshire College, as part of the Active Learning Initiative.  Funded by Sport England,  this programme aims to encourage participants to introduce exercise into their working day. ruralnet|uk is partnering with Warwickshire College to develop the programme at Stoneleigh Park as a rural cluster.

Seven teams took part in the race at Stoneleigh Park including ruralnet|uk, as well as The Health and Safety Executive, National Farmers Union and National Association of Farriers, Blacksmiths and Agricultural Engineers. Each organisation could enter a team of up to four participants to complete legs of the relay course, which took place on the grassland area directly in front of the Park's Royal Pavilion.