Advice from the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP) has been included in a governmental report on rural mental health.
The professional body for practicing UK counsellors and psychotherapists responded to a consultation by the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (EFRA) Committee last year.
The consultation sought information on the specific mental health challenges, as well as the current state of mental health and suicide prevention service provision, for those living and working in rural communities.
The BACP submission has been published by the EFRA Committee last week.
The submission aimed to highlight the potential challenges faced by farmers and those living in rural communities, it said today (Thursday, May 25).
These range from isolation to farm succession, from financial worries to physical health problems and structural and cultural barriers to seeking help.
BACP policy and public affairs officer, Karan Chhabra, said: “We’re pleased to see the evidence we provided in our inquiry response directly cited throughout the report, and used to inform the EFRA Committee’s policy recommendations to government
“We know that farmers and those living in rural communities suffer from a unique set of challenging circumstances.
“These range from higher living costs, known as the rural premium, to increased rates of loneliness, isolation and mental ill-health, as well as higher rates of suicide than the general population.”
Chhabra said he, and the BACP, hope that the report serves as a “catalyst” for direct, targeted investment in mental health services, including counselling and psychotherapy, in these communities.
Investment
The BACP said it called for “urgent, targeted investment” in mental health services to address the mental health issues of those in rural areas.
This, it said, would support greater access and choice to a range of psychological therapies, including counselling and psychotherapy.
The BACP’s evidence was directly cited throughout the committee’s report and “therefore informed the committee’s policy and funding recommendations to the government”, the BACP said.
These recommendations included the establishment of a Defra and Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) joint rural mental health policy and delivery team.
As well as this, the report called for an NHS focus on providing rural communities with good access to services in terms of location and outreach.
The BACP also called for the reduction in reliance on the Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) by expanding mental health support for children and young people and ensuring that the next round of the Farm Resilience Fund prioritises providing mental health support to the farming community.
“We’re committed to increasing access to psychological therapies for those from isolated and marginalised groups, playing a leading role in this agenda by working with a network of rural stakeholders, including rural research partners, representative bodies, mental health services and rural businesses,” the BACP said.
“We led a rural roundtable event at the flagship Health and Wellbeing at Work Conference in March and later this year we’ll convene a meeting of stakeholders committed to understanding and tackling mental health inequalities in rural communities.”
