A village appraisal is a study of the village, carried out by the people who live there as a basis for influencing its future. It is an exciting opportunity for a village to take a good look at itself, and it is a project in which everyone can be involved. It involves gathering factual information and the opinions of local people, so as to build up an overall picture of the village. An appraisal is a questionnaire survey carried out by and for the local community. It aims to identify local characteristics, problems, needs, threats, strengths and opportunities. It is a means of taking stock of the community and of creating a sound foundation of awareness and understanding on which to base future community action. Over the past 30 years more than 2,000 village appraisals have been undertaken in rural Britain. This research examined 48 village appraisals which had been carried out in England between 1985 and 1999. The suggested strengths and weaknesses of the village appraisals are: the target of the whole population in an area; the wide-ranging in its coverage of issues; well linked to a county-wide support agency; a good tool for identifying needs and wants, and local priorities; a good tool of local democracy and of increasing self-confidence in individuals and the whole community; not an exhaustive survey; very labour intensive; too little coverage of issues relating to the local economy; the lack of any input by professional planners and so forth.