Giving up green field sites for affordable housing is the only way to save village life and stop the West's countryside becoming 'the preserve of the wealthy and the isolated elderly'.

That was the stark message last night from a 'rainbow coalition' of campaign groups, led by the Government's own soon-to-be-abolished countryside quango.

Their report highlighted a shocking increase in the numbers of people in rural communities waiting for affordable housing – up almost 50,000 in just three years – while almost 100,000 houses in the countryside are second homes for weekenders.

The report has been given added weight because it was produced by a collection of organisations that do not normally pull together on rural issues: the pro-hunt Countryside Alliance worked alongside the Government's Commission for Rural Communities, while the National Housing Federation worked with normally anti-development groups like the Campaign to Protect Rural England.

They all agreed that village life is being decimated with the wholesale closures of pubs, post offices, shops and schools, and the only way to save country life is for each village to build small-scale developments of affordable housing for locals.

The report said 'just a handful of well-designed homes' can help sustain more local services and jobs.

"The current reality is that there is a massive shortage of rural affordable housing," the report said. "Rural council waiting lists show a marked increase from 428,045 in 2005 to 474,970 in 2008 – a growth of 11 per cent.

"In some areas the need has more than doubled over the same period.

"But the shortage of affordable housing doesn't just affect the people on the waiting list. It has negative consequences for everyone who lives, works or visits a rural area. For example, rural employers often now struggle to find workers for lower paid jobs. It is in everyone's interest to prevent rural England becoming the preserve of the wealthy and the isolated elderly. A relatively small number of new affordable homes in a village can help ensure rural areas have a bright future," it added.

Their message was not directed at the Government, but at parish councils who they said should be pro-active in identifying suitable land and working with housing associations or setting up their own to ensure the homes benefit local people.

NHF chief executive David Orr warned: "Unless we build more affordable homes for the local families who sustain and enrich village life, then we must accept that traditional community life will be wiped out within a generation in many areas.

"The cornerstones of English village life – the shop, the school and the pub – are all closing down in alarming numbers because families and young people are being priced out of the local area," he said.

"Local authorities need to assess just how many affordable homes are needed in each rural ward, and draw up action plans to get those homes delivered, before more small village schools are closed and traditional village life dies on its feet," he added.