Yana charity launches new rural mental health helpline

Rural mental health and suicide prevention charity Yana (You Are Not Alone), based in East Anglia, has launched a new live helpline to give immediate support to rural communities.

The helpline comes in response to Yana figures from the past three years, which show a worrying 216% increase in the number of requests for help and mental health support from rural communities.

This, the charity says, highlights the need for a “neutral space” for people to talk about their struggles and seek professional help where needed.

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From Monday 18 March, the new helpline will be active every Monday to Friday, between 10am-1pm, with a team of trained and experienced staff manning the phones to help people working within agriculture that are struggling with their mental health.

After these hours, the charity will continue to operate its helpline through a call-back system.

Henry Kilvert, chairman of trustees, said: “The aim for the Yana helpline is to reach as many people as possible.

“By making it more accessible, we believe more people will contact us to receive the support we provide.”

The live helpline can be reached by calling Yana on 0300 323 0400 or by emailing helpline@yanahelp.org.