Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will take steps with representatives from the farming sector to support people with mental health issues in rural communities.

As set out in the NHS Priorities and Operational Planning Guidance for 2024/25, NHS England is continuing to expand access to mental health services, to increase the number of people accessing mental health support. Integrated care boards are responsible for providing health and care services to meet the needs of their local populations.

We plan to recruit an additional 8,500 mental health workers across child and adult mental health services in England, to reduce delays and provide faster treatment, including in rural areas.

The Suicide prevention strategy for England: 2023 to 2028, published in September 2023, sets out an ambition to conduct and commission research and data linkage projects, including supporting the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs to look at agricultural workers, to understand the unique challenges in that occupational group and respond appropriately.

In addition, through its Farming and Countryside Programme, the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs is working with a range of farming charities, including the Royal Agricultural Benevolent Institution and the Yellow Wellies charity, which have highlighted mental health challenges for farming communities.