Mental health support focus of Farmers Guardian opinion pieces

A Harper Adams University student who is researching how student mental health could be boosted in agricultural curricula has written about his research in Farmers Guardian.

BSc (Hons) Agri-business student Tom York’s is examining the way that mental health education is being carried out at agricultural institutions – and was invited to discuss his research in an opinion piece for the magazine.

In it, Tom notes: “Mental health education is not a luxury – it is a necessity. Research consistently shows that early intervention can prevent more serious issues.

“Universities and colleges are in a unique position to equip future agricultural professionals with tools to manage their well-being and create a culture where mental health is taken as seriously as physical health.”

 Despite this, Tom explains his initial research has unveiled a mixed picture at institutions across the UK – and he is now asking these institutions to help further by filling in a survey about their teaching.

This can be found at: harper.ac.uk/tyhrp25

Meanwhile Tom’s supervisor, Elizabeth Creak Chair in Sustainable Agricultural Change Professor David Rose, also shared his own thoughts on mental health in a separate piece for the publication recently.

In it, Professor Rose notes recent Farm Safety Foundation figures paint a picture of worsening mental wellbeing – at the very point Defra have announced a team to look at poor mental health outcomes in the farming and agricultural sector.

Professor Rose adds: “To make any substantive process, Defra and the Government, as a whole, needs to tackle both causes of, and support for, poor farmer wellbeing in a joined-up way.

“The two aspects go hand-in-hand: the support landscape for farmer wellbeing could be brilliant, but if the underlying causes of poor wellbeing are not tackled, farmers will feel like it is a case of 'out of the frying pan, and into the fire'.”

He offers five tips for policymakers and the new Defra team to help them tackle the issue – which can be read in full on the Farmers Guardian website here.