Cornwall Rural Community Council

The origins of Cornwall Rural Community Council are preceded by the establishment of the Oxfordshire Rural Community Council, the first in the country, by Grace Hadow in 1920. Grace Hadow was active in the women’s suffrage movement, helped establish Britain’s Women’s Institute network and saw the Rural Community Council as a way of addressing social problems in the countryside which arose following the end of the First World War.

Other Rural Community Councils were slowly established, with Cornwall RCC being founded immediately after the Second World War in 1946 (although at that time it was known as Council of Social Service for Cornwall, the name change not occurring until the 1980’s). Previous to this, assistance to Cornwall’s growing network of village halls was delivered from an outpost of the National Council for Social Services in Bristol, mainly through correspondence, although occasional visits were undertaken by an officer driving down to what was then, in a pre-motorway era, a remote and unspoilt corner of the British Isles.

For a number of decades, the work of the CRCC was led by the Rev John Pearce and support to parish councils, playing fields and village halls comprised the focus for most of the charity’s activities as well as support for the welfare of the young and elderly and marriage guidance. As the organisation grew and its remit broadened into other areas of community life, it has moved location from its original offices in Strangways Terrace, Truro, several times.

Today the organisation is a large, modern charitable company which delivers a wide range of services and support to Cornish community groups and individuals. Its original ethos of responding to local needs still holds true; and the services it provides in order to do this continue to evolve as circumstances change within and across Cornwall.