Herefordshire farmer to take on 142-mile walk to highlight importance of mental health
Sam Stables is setting off from Ross-on-Wye today (9 February) and aiming to walk to London to shine a spotlight farmers face every single day
Note: This article features discussion about suicide and mental health, and has links to support at the end
The co-founder of a Herefordshire farming mental health charity is aiming to walk from the county to London from today to bring attention nationally to the challenges farmers face every single day.
Sam Stables, who set-up We Are Farming Minds with his wife Emily, is taking on the 142-mile journey wearing a rucksack with some of the issues they deal with in the farming community written on it and is also looking to highlight support is there for those who need it.
He's doing it alongside the running of the Farm Safety Foundation's ninth annual Mind Your Head campaign running from the 9-13 February, whose data has previously revealed 95% of young farmers (under 40) believe that mental health is the biggest hidden problem facing farmers today.
'Wellbeing in UK farmers at four-year low'
Latest research from Farm Safety Foundation released for this week has shown overall wellbeing within the farming community, as measured by the Warwick-Edinburgh Mental Wellbeing Scale (WEMWBS), has "fallen to its lowest point in four years".
It adds that mental wellbeing among farmers over 40 years old has hit a four-year low, with the sharpest decline being among those aged 61.
The Mind Your Head campaign is calling on farmers, rural organisations, colleges and Young Farmers Clubs to start life-saving conversations, learn practical skills and connect communities to support.
"My part that I'm hoping to play is to sort of make people, the general public, everybody, realise how tough mentally the farming industry is, especially in the current climate," Mr Stables said.
"So the idea (of the walk) is being a farmer on his own which many farmers are, especially nowadays in the way farming is, spending time isolated on their own.
"The rucksack represents the weight of all the worries that farmers carry on their backs on a daily basis, weather, financial issues, family issues, so many things that make the industry what it is, which sadly the statistics are a farmer a week takes their own life in this country and it’s incredibly sad."
Putting in the training
Ahead of taking on the challenge, Mr Stables said the farm had been keeping him busy in his preparation for it.
"I've been chasing a lot of sheep, that’s part of the training," he said with a smile across his face.
"I’ve not caught one yet, but certainly chased after them and had a good attempt.
"We’ve had some funny moments, trying to take a training top off while walking on a treadmill which did not end well."
Switching back to the journey awaiting him, he said the support ahead of it has "unbelievable" and it would be great to see it continue throughout the five days.
"I’m reaching out to farming families on my different sections so I've got farms to stay at through my journey down to London and that just shows that community where farming families come together and look after each other," he said.
"There's some amazing organisations within the country that are there to support so it is a walk of hope as well to know that there are people out there that will support you in those darkest times and you can be okay and you will be okay.Â
"I'm also raising money on my journey for the National Federation of Young Farmers, which is incredibly important for our next generation of farmers to know that mental health is at the forefront of their minds and to know that there is support out there."
He departs from Ross-on-Wye market this morning (9 February) and will finish at the Farmers Club in London on Friday.
The Farm Safety Foundation (Yellow Wellies), a member of The Royal Foundation’s National Suicide Prevention Network (NSPN), has also collaborated with fellow NSPN member Baton of Hope to launch a farming-themed digital suicide awareness and prevention package.
Support
If you've been impacted by the issue of suicide you can get more information on the Samaritans website.
If you're looking for support services near you, then you can find them across the UK using the Hub of Hope.