Category: Mental health

The racing industry is being encouraged to take action for mental health this week, as Mental Health Awareness Week launches nationwide today. The campaign is run by the Mental Health Foundation, and the theme for this year is ‘Anxiety’.

Racing’s human welfare charity, Racing Welfare, will be leading racing’s response to this important awareness campaign, aiming to raise awareness of the signs and symptoms of anxiety, normalising conversations and signposting to support services. The charity is calling for people working in the racing industry to take action for their own mental health or for the mental health of others in the racing community.

During the week Racing Welfare will be showcasing a new film that depicts anxiety building up for a racehorse trainer. The film has been created in conjunction with Equine Productions and shows typical day-to-day scenarios that can lead to poor mental health. In addition to the film, Racing Welfare will be sharing information about the signs and symptoms of anxiety and will be signposting to support services throughout the week. Green ribbons will also be visible across racecourses this week as the industry shows its support for the campaign.

Watch the film below:

Available to also watch on Youtube – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2gDIQnptcU0

The racing community will be encouraged to join the conversation about mental health across social media this week using the hashtags #MentalHealthAwarenessWeek and #ToHelpMyAnxiety. For those wanting to go one step further, Racing Welfare offers heavily subsidised mental health training, including accredited Mental Health First Aid England courses for anyone working in the industry who’d like to gain formal mental health training.

Racing Welfare’s Director of Welfare, Simone Sear, said: “Mental Health Awareness Week is a campaign we’ve supported for a number of years at Racing Welfare now. We know the pressures of day-to-day life can take their toll, and indeed racing brings its own unique challenges for people working in the sport. Our mental health services remain at the heart of Racing Welfare, working holistically with our practical support services to support racing’s people. We hope to see the industry get behind this important awareness campaign this week, and look forward to making strides in normalising conversations about mental health going forwards.”

Follow Racing Welfare on social media for updates on Mental Health Awareness Week.

Dan Skelton, who has been training from Lodge Hill in Warwickshire since 2013, recognises the importance of having a strong support team who are educated, inspired and motivated to achieve excellence in their field of work. A key part of that is ensuring the team are supported with their mental health – something which affects one in four people. As such, Dan has two team members who have undertaken Racing Welfare’s Mental Health First Aid training courses.

Dan said: “Having trained Mental Health First Aiders at Team Skelton is essential. Not only has my wife, Grace, completed the training. We have also sent another member of staff on the training, too.

“We have a close-knit team here, so it is important that we look out for each other and know how to recognise the signs and symptoms of someone suffering from poor mental health. It is as important as making sure our staff are equipped to maintain their physical fitness and health.”

Grace Skelton, who wears two hats as a Director of both Dan Skelton Racing and Alne Park Stud, spoke to Racing Welfare about the Mental Health First Aid training that she completed during the Covid-19 lockdown.

Racing Welfare’s vision is that every organisation with the British horseracing and Thoroughbred breeding industry has at least one Mental Health First Aider, which is just as crucial as first aiders for physical health.

This was a key factor in Dan winning the inaugural Lycetts leadership Award for exceptional leaders within Britain’s racing yards. The yard also won an Excellence Award for ensuring a safe working environment. On receiving the award in 2021, Dan said: “We pride ourselves on providing a safe working environment for the staff, so it was great to be recognised in this area in particular. It is not just about creating a safe physical environment here, but also an environment where staff can feel comfortable to talk about any issues that they might be facing.”

Find out more and book Racing Welfare’s mental health training courses here.