We recommend that by the end of this year, 2023: a) DEFRA and DHSC, working with all relevant public health, environmental and first responder stakeholders, assess the readiness of local plans for crisis events, and commence consultations on upgrading local preparedness for rural populations’ mental health, and b) HM Treasury, DHSC, DEFRA and NHS England review current emergency funding mechanisms and how these can be improved by establishing a dedicated Rural Mental Health 81 funding stream,...

We recommend that by the end of this year, 2023: a) DEFRA and DHSC, working with all relevant public health, environmental and first responder stakeholders, assess the readiness of local plans for crisis events, and commence consultations on upgrading local preparedness for rural populations’ mental health, and b) HM Treasury, DHSC, DEFRA and NHS England review current emergency funding mechanisms and how these can be improved by establishing a dedicated Rural Mental Health 81 funding stream, to enable local areas to quickly access more resources to respond to rural communities’ mental health needs during and, crucially, after crisis events. Type: recommendation | Number: 24 | Response status: not_accepted Government response: Defra contributed to the UK Health Security Agency’s published guidance on providing advice about the impacts of being flooded on people’s mental health: • Flooding health advice: mental health - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk), • Flooding and health: assessment and manage