Rural isolation in Oxfordshire

Healthwatch Oxfordshire worked with Community First Oxfordshire on research about rural isolation 488 people replied to the survey and a further 40 individuals took part in the focus groups and interview work. In total, 528 people participated in this survey work.

There was a near even split in respondent numbers and where they lived in the four rural districts in the county. Of these respondents, the majority said that they lived in a village and 40 lived in a rural hamlet or farm. Overwhelmingly, respondents used their own vehicles as their main form of transport, however, 14 respondents had no access to private or public transport and 12 respondents used community transport.

Different forms of transport are used by respondents to access key services. The most common mode was their own vehicles. However, buses, walking and taxis were also noted. Online usage was cited as the second or third choice for accessing shop/groceries, social/leisure facilities, pharmacist/chemist and banking. It is important to mention that for all 13 services listed some respondents noted that they ‘can’t access’ these services

 Most respondents lived between 6-10 miles or further from services such as a college, work, hospital/outpatients and a bank. Apart from primary schools, 5 respondents lived between 1-5 miles from their nearest GP surgery, pharmacists, dentist, post office and sport activities/gym.

Most people had access to the internet. 7 respondents said they had access but no device to use it and 1 participant had no access to the internet. Reasons for not having access were due to poor internet connection and preferring face to face contact. Comments in the interviews and focus groups noted that most people had some form of access to the internet, but affordability and knowledge on how to use the internet was an issue for a small number of individuals.

 Internet use was important for participants to connect with family and friends, online banking, online shopping, exploring/researching online and booking GP appointments. The two common forms of localised social media used by respondents were Facebook groups and community websites.

Most respondents stated that they either knew their immediate neighbours reasonably well or very well. Most respondents experienced face to face contact daily or a few days a week.

Respondents were involved in a wide range of activities. A good number of respondents said they were involved in the community through volunteering, online through local social media channels and exercise/sports classes and through social groups. Others cited work responsibilities, a lack of confidence, physical health reasons and transport availability, which prevented them from getting involved in the wide range of community activities.

Poor access to services because of a lack of public transport was the most common issue raised in the focus groups and in the interviews. Young people were often reliant on their parents who work for transport, which limited their ability to get out to where their friends and activities were.

There was discussion about how people who felt isolated were identified, and the difficulty in reaching people who were often invisible either because they were house-bound, lacked confidence to use services near them or chose to not get involved or reach out themselves.

Youth club members highlighted the lack of things for them do and the difficulty in fitting in to an older person’s community or one in which has activities for older people or young families but not for those in their late-teens/early-20s. Many young people felt they had no informal places to meet up. The significance of ‘informal’ spaces was an important point. Some young people talked about the need for community events, like car boot sales, which brought people of all ages together.

Some younger women and a single man were concerned about their safety when they were out. The safety issue meant that at times they felt isolated.

Many interviewees liked living in a rural area and enjoyed the sense of community despite some of the limitations. Several interviewees had immediate and wider family and friend networks because they had lived in the community for many years. Some interviewees mentioned the impact of new housing developments to their communities and how it sometimes destabilises the existing community or communities.