Health and wellbeing
Bringing the industry together on a serious issue
The complexity of farming, alongside constant risk and relentless uncertainty, takes a real toll on the people who grow our food. The Company set up a forum to understand that better, and to help the industry support its own.
If you need support now
You are not alone, and help exists. The Resource File lists rural support organisations across the UK, by area — people who understand farming and who you can talk to.
How it started
The WCF Health and Wellbeing Forum
In 2017 Philip Wynn, then Master, called together every rural support group he could contact — to understand the issues being faced, and how the industry might support them better.
The issue of health and wellbeing within agriculture was not generally well understood.
It became clear quickly that the wider industry did not understand the problem, that there were significant funding and resourcing gaps, and that stress among younger people entering agriculture was substantial — with a real opportunity to help those about to begin a career in it.
From that first meeting the initiative has gained the support of more than fifty organisations. The Forum has become the leading, trusted facilitation group for health and wellbeing in the industry, meeting regularly both in person and online.
It has had two chairmen: the Reverend Gordon Gatward, and more recently Jim Hume, who heads the National Rural Mental Health Forum in Scotland. Jim Hume received the Master’s Award at the 2022 Banquet for taking the work forward.
In this section
The Forum, the evidence and where to get help
What the research found
An industry with potential, and an urgent need
The report the Company funded set out the picture plainly: major challenges around mental health, long working hours and rural isolation, alongside unpredictable weather, uncertain markets and volatile prices.
Rural isolation and the close-knit nature of farming communities mean people are sometimes reluctant to seek help — and a reduction in public services means it is not always there when they do. The support groups set up for exactly this are being called on more than ever, with finite resources.
Help is there
If any of this describes you, or someone you farm with, the directory below lists people who can help — and who understand the industry you work in.