Imagine If Partnership bring Farming Health Hub under their umbrella

At the end of 2022 Imagine If Partnership took over the running of the Farming Health Hub (FHH) from Duchy Cornwall. In 2023, alongside the launch of the University of Exeter’s Farming report: Ageing Farmers Health and Access to Healthcare in the Wake of Digital Service Provision, they also relaunched the Farming Health Hub.

The report, a partnership collaboration between the University of Exeter and the FHH was written and delivered in partnership with the University of Exeter’s Inclusivity Project and funded by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and it highlights that future farming health services – whether in-person, hybrid or fully digital – need to be inclusive by design to effectively reach aging rural populations such as farmers. It goes on to state that older farmers and more well-established farming families need to be empowered to use services and that this can be achieved by capability development to foster awareness about health and illness and to build digital skills, providing work relief to free up farmers’ time, facilitating peer support, and promoting inclusion in decisions about health and the design and delivery of support services.

Since then Imagine If and the University of Exeter have been busy behind the scenes developing the Accidental Counseling website and courses which will support the farming community moving forward into 2024. You can find out more about the Accidental Counseling concept here on the new website, which has been created to support people who work alongside the farming community.

https://www.accidentalcounsellors.co.uk/

Under the management of Imagine If the FHH will build upon the recommendations within the report and work with organisations such as Mole Valley Farmers, Public Health and health partners, employers, and rural communities to provide place-based advice, support, and guidance to farming communities in local venues such as livestock markets and pop- up venues rather than farmers and their families having to visit more formal environments. T

he change in management of the project will also bring a community focus to the provision and will see Imagine If further develop the aims and ambitions of the network with their own ethos in co-production within communities offering provision, resources, activity and skill-building opportunities to marginalised communities that are most in need.

“Kevin Feaviour Imagine If’s Director said:

“Initiatives like this that provide valuable funding and expertise from the University of Exeter bring key benefits to our local community – they enable us to bring to life and better understand the needs of our farming community, a taste of working and living within the industry and insight into the lives of people that have worked within it for so many years. We are also incredibly grateful to Mole Valley Farmers for all their support.”

On the 12th of Feb Imagine If held its first face to face Farming Health Hub in Troon Village Hall, and plan to roll out these Hubs once a month – the 2nd Mon of the month from 7pm – 9pm.

Imagine If are also developing Accidental Counselor training which will be announced soon. Watch this space for further updates on the latest developments with the Farming Health Hub, Accidental Counseling and the face to face Farming Health Hubs.

Find the University of Exeter Farming Report at www.imagineif.net/FHHReport

For more information about The Farming Health Hub please contact Nikki Kelly at nikki.kelly@imagineif.net