Huge uptake for farming welfare survey

The latest research project into health and well-being in the farming community has concluded its first stage, thanks to an “outstanding” response.

Farming charity the Royal Agricultural Benevolent Institution (RABI) has been delighted by the response to the Big Farming Survey, which it said has delivered the most comprehensive level and range of data collected on the subject.

Once analysed, it is hoped the findings will inform how RABI and other organisations provide future support.

Stakeholders

Alicia Chivers, RABI chief executive, said: “Working collaboratively with key stakeholders across the sector has been integral to achieving such a high response rate. To ensure we gathered responses from the widest possible range of farming people, we had to be ambitious on behalf of our community.

“The results have exceeded our expectations and astounded many, including one research centre that advised us a response rate of more than a couple of thousand was unattainable. We are hugely grateful to every organisation and individual who has supported the Big Farming Survey.

“Our objective was to deliver statistically valid findings that encompass the diversity in farming today. We have more than achieved this. The results will provide a true reflection of the pressures and the impacts that people are facing, both from a personal and business perspective.”

Autumn event

Working in partnership with the Centre for Rural Policy Research at the University of Exeter, the findings from the Big Farming Survey are being analysed and will be published at a live launch event in the autumn.

Matt Lobley, professor of rural resource management at the University of Exeter and research lead, said: “The response from the farming community has been outstanding. Receiving around 15,500 responses means we have a really robust data set reflecting different farming situations, a broad range of farm types and sizes, and a good mix of tenures, upon which we will base our analysis.”