New research published by the House of Commons has revealed the scale of the mental health crisis currently impacting rural areas.
The Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee (EFRA) is conducting an inquiry into rural mental health and has published evidence submitted by the Countryside Alliance based on a survey conducted over Christmas.
The survey uncovered a broad spectrum of experiences of mental health and healthcare, and suggested that a key driver of ill-health was a lack of appreciation and respect for the rural way of life, from policymakers to individuals.
Attracting a total of 717 responses and over 1,700 individual comments, the survey was designed to elicit information that would be useful in addressing those questions being considered by EFRA that respondents would be well placed to comment on.
The inquiry is considering questions relating to the specific mental health challenges faced by rural communities, as well as mental health services and how well they meet the needs of rural populations.
The EFRA Committee will also look at suicide rates among agricultural workers and related occupations, and the effectiveness of prevention services.
The survey responses framed six key recommendations. Chief among these was that mental health support must be tailored to the needs of rural communities, not the convenience of the providers.
And while there is a role for remote provision by telephone or computers, more than 67% said that they would prefer to access mental healthcare in person.
The Countryside Alliance says that funding for services should be apportioned across the UK in a manner that recognises the inherently lower population density of rural areas.
Services should become more visible, the rural group argues, to encourage people who need help to seek it at an earlier stage.
The UK as a whole must eschew ideological hostility towards rural occupations and pursuits, including farming, by developing a greater appreciation for the realities of life in the countryside.
Additionally, victims of online abuse should routinely be offered mental health support and the government should recognise gamekeeping as a profession at elevated risk of crisis.
David Bean, the Countryside Alliance’s government relations manager said: “Rural Britain must not be left behind as awareness of mental health rightly grows, so this inquiry by the EFRA Committee is both timely and critical.
"We wanted to use our response to give a voice to those in our rural communities who have experienced challenges to their and their loved ones’ mental health.
"We are extremely grateful to over 700 supporters who gave such thoughtful responses to our survey. Thanks to them, the Committee has heard directly from those who are most affected.”
