A new initiative to increase the provision of affordable housing in rural areas of England has been announced.
Administered jointly by the Homes and Communities Agency (HCA) and the Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment, the project will see the government's £1m Rural Masterplanning Fund being spent on establishing master plans to tackle housing issues.
One part of the plan will be for incentives to be offered to landowners to provide plots for affordable housing, something proposed in the 2008 Matthew Taylor Report.
Such developments could lead to many more new homes being constructed in the countryside, with the corresponding increase in demand for flooring.
HCA chief executive Sir Bob Kerslake said: "This will help guarantee the survival of rural communities as thriving places people can afford."
Last month, the HCA stated it is on course to hit its targets for starts and completions of homes in the current financial year.
