Mental Health

Farming communities demonstrated strength and resilience to overcome the foot-and-mouth crisis and its aftermath. But have lessons been learnt 25 years on?

Farm Safety Foundation ambassador Poggy Murray Whitham explores how issues like isolation, legacy, identity and changing cultural attitudes are shaping a gradual shift toward greater openness and peer support in farming

Before his career in politics, Epping Forest MP Dr Neil Hudson was a veterinary inspector who was on the frontline of the foot-and-mouth outbreak in 2001. Dr Hudson remembers the once bustling farms which became empty, the impact it had on the sector's mental health, and why the current Government should never take the UK's national biosecurity for granted

Tenant Farmers Association chief executive George Dunn reflects on the outbreak 25 years ago, the heartbreaking conversations he had with farmers, the devastating open-air pyres of livestock being culled to stop the disease from spreading, and the determination of farmers to never let things become so bad again

Sheep farmer Sam Stables' speaks of his 'incredible' journey as 142-mile trek raises almost £50k as part of Mind Your Head Week

Duchy of Cornwall tenant Sam Stables said he was over the moon to receive support from the Prince of Wales as he shines a spotlight on the immense pressures farmers face every single day and to raise vital funds for mental health charities

The winter season can bring with it many mental health challenges - but help is out there

David Exwood, NFU deputy president speaks about mental health during Mind Your Head Week

Horsham MP John Milne said mental well-being support in rural communities must be treated as a part of farming infrastructure, adding that NHS services must be accessible and delivered in ways which understands the rural way of life

Poor sleep quality, loneliness, and high levels of stress and anxiety remain a cause for concern among women in farming compared to the general population, according to new research