CALLS are being made for the 'bedroom tax' to be scrapped in rural communities with less than 3,000 people.

Cheshire Community Action (CCA), a charity with its headquarters in Northwich Business Centre, is backing the argument put forward by its national body Action with Communities in Rural England (ACRE).

ACRE says there are not enough one and two-bedroom properties in the countryside for tenants who want to downsize because they can't afford to pay more rent.

The under-occupation charge, or 'bedroom tax', cuts the benefits of tenants of working age in homes deemed to have spare rooms and came into force in April 2013.

Mark Reading, CCA's chief operating officer, said: "As we move towards two years of the bedroom tax, its impact on rural communities is becoming ever clearer.

"The policy takes no account of the challenges rural tenants face.

"Those who have stayed put and tried to make up the shortfall were already at a disadvantage; the cost of living in the countryside is around £4,500 a year more than living in an urban area.

"There is evidence that tenants have fallen into arrears, borrowed money to pay the extra or cut back on household essentials."

ACRE made its call in its 2015 manifesto ahead of a second reading debate in March of a bill to exempt unpaid family carers from the charge.

It said it supported the bill but argued that a similar exemption should be made for rural settlements under 3,000.

Nick Chase, ACRE's head of rural insight, said: "While we support the efforts being made by current MPs to support the needs of carers and to bring about a review of the availability of affordable housing, it is clear the specific challenges faced by rural communities must be taken into account.

"Our manifesto asks for the tax to be scrapped for communities with population of fewer than 3,000 and we will be urging the next Government to review this unfair policy as quickly as possible."