In 2012 the Commission for Rural Communities funded and published research by the Cambridge Centre for Housing and Planning Research, which develops a new understanding for rural areas of: The full report, and a summary version, can be found below:
http://www.defra.gov.uk/crc/files/Rural_housing_at_a_time_of_economic_change-2nd-May.pdf
http://www.defra.gov.uk/crc/files/Rural_housing_and_economic_change_summary2.pdf
Homes and Communities Agency – http://www.homesandcommunities.co.uk/
Department for Communities and Local Government – https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/department-for-communities-and-local-government