MORE than a thousand country pubs and village shops could close during the next year due to a shortage of affordable homes in rural areas, a report will warn today.

Around 1,200 shops have already closed in rural areas during the past two years, while more than 600 country pubs have closed during the past 12 months alone, according to the Rural Shops Alliance (RSA) and British Beer and Pub Association (BBPA).

The groups warned that there was little sign that the dramatic rate of decline was slowing down, and they estimate that around 33 village shops and 54 country pubs could go out of business each month, during the coming year.

They said the closures were “ripping the heart out” of community life in hundreds of villages across the country.

The mass closures are being blamed on declining demand for services in villages where local families have been priced out of the market by an influx of wealthy commuters and second homeowners.

David Orr, chief executive of the National Housing Federation, said: “Many villages are now in real danger of losing their unique identity.”