A Devon dairy farmer has spoken of her mental health struggles as she highlights a campaign to support colleagues.

Holly Atkinson, who runs a tenant farm near Newton Abbot with her husband Adam, is one of the faces of the The Farm Safety Foundation’s (FSF or Yellow Wellies charity) Mind Your Head campaign.

Holly started working on farms at the age of 15 then went onto become a vet, working for eight years.

Holly met her farmer husband in Somerset and and moved to Newton Abbot for his new job managing 650 cows. She changed career six years ago to join him running the farm together.

Holly, a qualified mental health first aider, said: “I haven’t had any critical mental health issues. But I have struggled sometime and have learned to recognise when the signals come that I need to take action. Too many farmers just keep carrying on through the stresses and finally, small but stressful issues pile up and cumulatively end in a crisis.

“I know the many pressures of living as a farmer. We’re living at work, basically, it’s like living at the office. We never get a break and have to deal with things as they happen. My advice is to admit sometimes the stress can be too much and find someone to talk to. They can be a stranger, a GP or a colleague. Sharing worries can put things in perspective and you don’t feel alone. The Yellow Wellies campaign is a great initiative.”

The FSF Mind Your Head week is running from February 9 to 13 as alarming ONS (Office for National Statistics) figures show UK farmers mental wellbeing has hit a four-year low, following 47 suicides in 2024, a seven per cent increase from 2022.

Historically the most resilient social group, wellbeing among UK farmers over 61 has seen the sharpest decline. Mental wellbeing among UK farmers over 40 years has also hit a four-year low.

The FSF annual campaign is to tackle the suicide risk in agriculture, addressing a largely ‘hidden’ problem.

The FSF (or Yellow Wellies), is a member of The Royal Foundation’s National Suicide Prevention Network (NSPN). The FSF is working with Baton of Hope (suicide prevention charity) to launch a farming suicide prevention campaign.

The FSF project calls on farmers, rural organisations, colleges and young farmers clubs to start life-saving conversations, learn practical skills and connect communities to support each other.

Stephanie Berkeley, of FSF, said: “Agriculture benefits from rural support groups and charities delivering vital support. But there’s very little suicide prevention training tailored specifically for those working in agriculture.

“Farming brings a unique set of pressures - long hours, isolation, financial uncertainty, generational expectations and physical risk.

“Without training designed for the realities of agricultural life, we risk leaving those most vulnerable without the tools they need to recognise warning signs and intervene effectively.”

Stephanie added: “Farming is tough. Long hours, hard graft. Too many farming families are quietly carrying the weight of crisis and loss. When communities know what to say and what to do, lives can be saved.”