Workers reach breaking point as new report reveals quiet mental health crisis in forestry - Institute of Chartered Foresters

A survey of over 500 professionals reveals that stress is a “constant backdrop” in forestry and arboriculture

The Royal Forestry Society (RFS), working with a coalition of leading forestry organisations, has published the Breaking Points survey report which shows the forestry and arboriculture sector is experiencing a mental health crisis.

Nick Adams, a forestry contractor and a Policy Committee Vice-Chair at the Forestry Contracting Association, describes the mental health strain of his job as “unsustainable”.

“I’d always thought I could just push through,” he said. “There was a moment I realised the job was going to kill me if I didn’t change something. There is only so much someone can take before they pack it in and leave the industry or worse. Unfortunately, the problems are not new; they’re decades old.”

Nick’s experience reflects a wider pattern uncovered by the Breaking Points survey, which shows stress is now a “constant backdrop” across the forestry and arboriculture workforce.

Official data show suicides have risen over the last 15 years and that men, particularly those in middle age, are at heightened risk of poor mental health. The Breaking Points survey warns this is especially relevant to forestry, where many workers fall into this demographic and experience the compounding stressors of lone working and the transient nature of job roles.

The Forestry Commission-funded report paints a picture of a sector under immense strain. Financial instability, physical risk and rural isolation are heightening the risk of poor mental health among those who manage the nation’s trees and woodlands.