This study has explored the processes of social exclusion in rural Britain by focusing on changes in the four sources of support available to households in diverse rural localities (markets, state, voluntary and community sector, and family and friends) and how they interact to reinforce cumulatively or to substitute and offset social exclusion and financial vulnerability. This conceptual approach has proved effective in revealing the connections between individual experiences and broader processes of individualisation, precariatisation, labour market flexibilisation, welfare conditionality, digitalisation, ‘roll-back’ and ‘roll-out’ neoliberalisation and austerity and the extent to which these are modified by place. The framework has also revealed emergent agency on the part of rural residents (individual and collective) and highlighted issues around civil society and community empowerment.

In conclusion, this chapter offers some closing reflections on the original contributions of this study to our understanding of poverty and social exclusion in rural Britain and on the implications for policy and practice. We begin by reflecting on the main themes emerging from this study and highlight some of the new insights which add to our understanding of social exclusion in rural Britain. We then summarise previous studies’ suggestions for policy interventions and go on to consider the potential to combine person-based and place-based policy approaches to social exclusion in rural areas. Building on these, we highlight some of the most pressing, immediate policy challenges and suggest eight practical opportunities for policy development to address these and promote social inclusion in rural Britain. Finally, we share some closing reflections relating to issues of power and governance.

Main themes emerging and original contributions

While statistics show that average incomes are somewhat above the national average in accessible rural areas, this research confirms the findings of many previous studies that poverty, financial vulnerability and social exclusion affect many people in rural as well as urban Britain, but that in rural Britain it is less visible and less likely to be addressed by policy. As noted in the introduction, half the households in rural Britain fell below the poverty line at some point during the 18 years between 1991 and 2008, at which point the impacts of the financial crisis and subsequent austerity will have increased vulnerability further alongside cuts to public services and social welfare.