Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will commission research on the effectiveness of the Farmer Welfare Grant (a) overall and (b) in improving mental health outcomes for farmers.

Defra routinely assesses the effectiveness of all grants and funds it finances.

Recipients of the Farmer Welfare Grant are required to submit interim reports in line with their funding agreements, as well as final reports upon completion of the grant.

Defra undertakes a range of in-house evaluation and is researching the overall effectiveness of this grant by reviewing recipient’s interim reports. We use a range of mechanisms, including feedback from farming welfare charities, to monitor the mental health outcomes of farming communities.