A COUNCIL worker is about to use her experience of a Swedish summer school to help Pendle's rural areas.

Jane Wright has just returned from a 10-day stay at a summer school in Gotland, Sweden, to learn about sustainable rural development.

Jane, the council's policy officer, was one of 51 people representing 17 countries to attend the event and was the sole representative from the UK.

The summer school was designed to assist delegates to help rural communities identify how they can develop the economy and diversify in a 'sustainable way' -- without impacting negatively on neighbouring businesses and to create a long-term future.

Jane now hopes to use the information to assist rural areas in Pendle.

During the trip, Jane gave a presentation on the Our Place Our Pendle project, in which more than 2,000 residents in Pendle were consulted in June 2000 on their vision for the borough in the future.

She also took examples of local produce -- black puddings, Lancashire cheese, a Pendle Pie made by the catering section of Pendle Leisure Trust to celebrity chef Paul Heathcote's recipe, and bottles of the Pendle Witches Brew.

Jane also toured four local businesses in Gotland to ascertain whether they were operating in a sustainable manner.

"We hope to be able to draw on the experience in Sweden in the future development of rural areas in Pendle. There were lots of ideas that we could use in Pendle because of the culture and heritage that the borough has," she said.

As a follow-up to the school, Jane is meeting representatives from the National Farmers Union to discuss ways that local farmers could diversify.

She added: "Sustainability in this context is very much about a community getting involved in deciding what businesses are required.

"Existing and new businesses then create links with one another to benefit all. It's not something that can be achieved overnight, but it's this type of co-operation we must strive for if our rural areas are to have a future."