Rural businesses have long complained they are held back by Britain’s patchy broadband infrastructure, but new research suggests they’re also struggling to find the right skills to make the most of new technology such as cloud computing and the Internet of Things.

Around 80pc of rural firms said they see online tools as key to their future growth prospects, but more than half complained of a lack of digitally-savvy staff and training opportunities, according to research by the Rural England think tank and Scotland’s Rural College, commissioned by Amazon.

Rural England chair Brian Wilson said: “Whilst connectivity remains a concern, it is clear that more needs to be done beyond this in terms of more proactive support and skills development.”

One fifth of the 800 companies asked said they struggled to find the right staff and that their existing workforce didn’t have the necessary digital skills, while 14pc said they couldn’t find appropriate training and 30pc had difficulty tracking down external contractors.

The boss of IceRobotics, a company that produces digital sensors that monitor the health of farmers' cows, said technologies such as cloud computing were key to improving innovation in agriculture.

Douglas Armstrong said: “The faster we get rural businesses adopting new technology, the more globally competitive rural Britain will be.”