Over 100,000 young adults will leave the English countryside over the next three years - prompting fears that traditional village life in many areas of the country is now in terminal decline, according to new research published today.

The National Housing Federation(NHF), which represents England's housing associations, estimates 103,000 people aged between 24 and 35 will migrate from villages and market towns to urban areas by 2012.

The NHF said a chronic shortage of affordable housing in rural England was fuelling the mass exodus of young people from the countryside and estimates around 100,000 new affordable homes need to be built to meet demand in rural areas over the next 10 years.

The Federation is calling on local authorities in rural areas to draw up action plans to address the housing needs of their communities as it launches a new campaign today aimed at tackling the housing crisis in the countryside.

Waiting lists for affordable homes have soared by around 40% in rural areas over the last five years to 700,000 people as younger adults have been priced out of villages by an influx of wealthy commuters, second home buyers and retired couples.

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The changing demographics of the countryside have seen shops, schools and transport services closed as families are forced to look for more affordable places to live.

Rural house prices tend to be well above the national average, while rural incomes are well below the national average - and this affordability gap has widened rather than narrowed over the last five years.

But a shortage of suitable land, a failure to assess local housing needs and local opposition often means the affordable homes which are desperately needed are never built.

The number of young people living in rural areas has been declining at an alarming rate for well over a decade, as large numbers of affluent retired people have made the journey in the opposite direction and relocated to the countryside.

NHF Chief Executive David Orr said: "There's a real danger that traditional village life will die out within a generation unless we can build more affordable homes for young people and stop what is fast becoming a mass exodus to cheaper, urban areas.

"Rural England desperately needs young adults to support and contribute to their communities, but high house prices and a chronic shortage of affordable housing are threatening to turn our villages into family free zones.

"Far too often the voices of people opposed to building new homes drown out the needs of local people who want to stay and sustain their villages.

"We want affordable homes to be built in every rural area where there is a proven need for it. It's crucial that every rural local authority in the country now draws up an action plan detailing how they plan to meet the demand for affordable housing.

"This would place a greater emphasis on local authorities to tackle the housing crisis on their front door and ensure they were doing their bit in halting the decline of the English countryside."

(CD/JM)