29/10/20 - Rural homelessness, dark sky parks and public money for hunts

Farming Today

• Episode: 29/10/20 - Rural homelessness, dark sky parks and public money for hunts
• Website: Farming Today
• Feed URL: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b006qj8q/episodes/downloads.rss
• Duration: 00:13:21
• Published: 2020-10-29 07:00

Rural homelessness has more than doubled in the past two years, according to the countryside charity CPRE and the English Rural Housing Association. They say in England just under 20,000 households were categorised as homeless by rural local authorities this year - a rise of 115% on 2018. Charlotte Smith asks what the solution is. The Yorkshire Dales and North York Moors National Parks are applying to become ‘International Dark Sky Parks’ in the hopes of developing astro-tourism’. We visit a community run observatory. And grants to help cope with the effects of Covid 19 have been vital for some rural businesses. But some campaigners are criticising councils for giving money to hunts. A freedom of information request by the anti-hunting organisation, Keep the Ban found more than a hundred and eighty thousand pounds has been given to hunts. Presented by Charlotte Smith Produced for BBC Audio in Bristol by Heather Simons