THINGS are getting better in the countryside - foot and mouth disease excepted - according to a Countryside Agency survey published today.

The Government funded agency, in its survey Rural Services in 2000, says that rural bus services are improving and more local communities have a village-hall type meeting places, often thanks to National Lottery funding.

"It is possible to stop the rot," said agency deputy chair Pam Warhurst, pointing out that 67% of rural parishes had some sort of bus service - up by 7% from 1997 - whilst village hall numbers had increased by a remarkable 15% to reach 85% of the population.

She added, however, that more needs to be done, a sentiment illustrated by the sharp decline in rural post offices - 546 closed in the same three years - and village shops.

This means that more than 70% of rural communities do not have a shop. At the same time, 80 per cent of country folk live within three miles of a supermarket.