LONG Compton parish councillors have teamed up with Warwickshire Rural Housing Association (WRHA) in an attempt to attract new blood into the village.

In recent years the village, which with fewer than 400 residents is one of the smallest in Warwickshire, has seen a decline in services with its school, shop and post office closing.

Its population is ageing too and parish clerk Peter McLean said: "Many of the current activities are instigated and organised by retired people. They can't carry on forever and they tend to devote their energies to things which interest older people."

In an attempt to halt the decline, the parish council and WRHA are carrying out a housing needs survey to see if people, and especially young people, would be interested in remaining in or moving back to the village.

WRHA development officer Shaun Fielding said: "To gain planning consent, we have to demonstrate that people living in the village need affordable housing.

"If many of them have already moved away to find accommodation, it may be impractical for them to return, but we hope this will not prove to be the case."

If the survey reveals high demand for affordable housing, WRHA will then have to find suitable sites to develop, and only then will the process of building new houses for new families be able to start.

The council and the housing association are urging anyone interested in moving to the village to get in touch.

Mr McLean said: "If homes were available, it might be possible to attract people back into the village who have left to rent elsewhere.

"As a parish council what we want to ensure is the presence of young families, and we like to think that we can take action now to achieve this."

The village's residents might be ageing, but they are still active, raising £30,000 to re-hang the church bells last year and this year they are keen to improve the play area for the village's 20 or so children. If you are interested in finding out more contact the WRHA on 01530 411877.