Most British social work literature is written with the implicit assumption of an urban context, but large numbers of people still live in comparatively rural settings. Rural social work remains a largely unrecognized dimension of practice, receiving little attention beyond the reportage of individual projects or initiatives. This paper considers whether it is a sufficiently distinctive area of practice to warrant specific consideration. It concludes that it is an under-researched aspect of practice within the UK which merits particular attention and identifies some areas for future development.