Hello and welcome to my second blog. It’s been another busy and inspiring month, and I’ve really enjoyed hearing about the fantastic work taking place across Norfolk, Suffolk and North East Essex.

To begin, I’d like to highlight that both NHS Norfolk and Waveney Integrated Care Board (NWICB) and NHS Suffolk and North East Essex Integrated Care Board (SNEE ICB) have recently published their annual reports, showcasing impressive progress over the past year — from improving access to care and embracing innovation, to strengthening partnerships and supporting our workforce. My heartfelt thanks to everyone involved for your dedication and commitment. You can read the NWICB annual report and SNEE ICB annual report here.

In my blogs, I share some of the brilliant work happening across our system, framing them around the three key shifts of the NHS 10-Year Plan: bringing care closer to home, embracing digital innovation, and focusing on prevention.

From Hospital to Community

Across Norfolk, Suffolk and North East Essex, we’re continuing to see more care and support delivered closer to home — including in the field of research. Our Research and Innovation teams are leading the way, with nearly half a million pounds invested since 2022 in projects tackling issues such as bariatric surgery recovery, motor neurone disease, and health inequalities for people with learning disabilities. More GP practices than ever are now embedding research into everyday care, and the establishment of a new Primary Care Commercial Research Delivery Centre (PC-CRDC) – one of only 14 nationally – will help bring cutting-edge clinical research and innovation even closer to the communities we serve.

At West Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust, plans are progressing to expand the Community Diagnostic Centre at Newmarket Community Hospital, improving access to tests and scans. A public consultation is now underway to help shape a modern, accessible facility for local people.

In Norfolk, the New Roads service is helping children at risk of entering care stay safely with their families. Based on the No Wrong Door model, it provides outreach, short-term accommodation and life coaching for young people. A third hub is now opening in Great Yarmouth, Broadland and North Norfolk, building on the success of Norwich and Dereham. Since 2021, it has supported more than 560 children to remain at home.

In Suffolk, Ofsted has recognised early signs of improvement in the county’s Front Door children’s services, praising timely responses and strong multi-agency collaboration. Work is underway to create an Integrated Front Door, offering families joined-up support from one central point.

Finally, I recently visited East Coast Community Healthcare (ECCH) in Lowestoft, and was inspired to see how the Primary Care Home team — a brilliant partnership of nurses, therapists, GPs and social care colleagues — is helping people stay well in their own homes, recover faster, and avoid unnecessary hospital stays. It’s a shining example of joined-up care making a real difference locally.

From Analogue to Digital

Digital transformation continues to accelerate across our systems, helping to improve access, reduce waiting times and make care more convenient for patients.

Following on from my visit, I was delighted to hear that ECCH has been shortlisted for two national awards — Public Services Social Enterprise of the Year and Best Use of Digital for Improving Care Pathways. Their investment in digital tools, including a self-help physiotherapy app and online self-referral system, is already improving access to care and reducing missed appointments.

In Suffolk and North East Essex, patients are the first in the country to benefit from an AI-powered test for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), which delivers results in minutes rather than days. Meanwhile in Norfolk, artificial intelligence is being used to help identify people most at risk of falls, allowing social workers to step in early with tailored support. Following a successful pilot, this innovative system now supports over 12,000 residents — helping more people live safely and independently at home.

Digital inclusion remains key to ensuring everyone can benefit. In Suffolk, local libraries are offering drop-in sessions to help people use the NHS App, providing friendly, hands-on support. The sessions offer friendly, hands-on support to raise awareness of the app and help people navigate and use it with confidence. The pilot project has been funded by the Integrated Care Academy based at the University of Suffolk.

From Sickness to Prevention

Prevention remains at the heart of our long-term ambition to improve health outcomes and reduce demand on services.

With winter approaching, both the Norfolk and Waveney and SNEE winter wellness campaigns are now live, helping people stay healthy, warm, and well while easing pressure on NHS services. It’s a good time to check your eligibility for seasonal vaccinations and take the opportunity to protect your health this winter. Parents of two- and three-year-olds can also now book flu vaccinations online — or, for the first time, visit a participating local pharmacy without an appointment.

There’s also been significant progress in dental care. In Norfolk and Waveney, £1.5 million has been invested to expand the dental workforce — helping over 98,000 people return to NHS care and deliver 25,000 urgent appointments. In Suffolk and north east Essex, the Training Hub is extending its expertise to local dental practices, offering new training opportunities and leadership roles to strengthen the workforce. Meanwhile, the Ipswich Town Foundation’s SHINE Programme, delivered with SNEE ICB, is teaching children about oral health in areas of greatest need — a fantastic example of prevention in action.

I recently had the pleasure of visiting the College of West Anglia in King’s Lynn and was really impressed by their new state-of-the-art health faculty and the quality of teaching there. They’re soon launching a dental nurse apprenticeship programme with the University of Suffolk – a fantastic example of cross-county collaboration to grow our dental workforce and inspire future health careers.

I was also honoured to sponsor the Coastal Navigators’ Network Year Two Overview event in London, which showcased brilliant work across the country, including in Felixstowe and Great Yarmouth, to tackle health inequalities and build stronger neighbourhoods. The Apollo Project, part of this work, continues to support people into meaningful employment and was recently recognised with a Great British Care Award for its success in recruitment and retention — a well-deserved achievement for an inspiring programme! You can read more about the Apollo Project in this insightful blog here.

Finally, more than 2,300 Norfolk families and professionals contributed to a SEND survey, helping shape improvements in early identification and transition support, while initiatives such as Teams Around the School are strengthening community resilience. It’s a great reminder that prevention begins with early action — by listening, connecting and supporting people before challenges escalate, we can help our communities thrive.

Celebrating Our People and Communities

It’s always inspiring to see colleagues and partners recognised for the incredible work they do every day to support our communities.

Congratulations to Clacton GP Dr Tanvir Alam, who has been appointed to the Royal College of General Practitioners UK Council. This is a fantastic achievement that reflects Tanvir’s commitment to primary care and his leadership in shaping the future of general practice nationally. Tanvir has also shown inspirational leadership for racial equality in healthcare and has recently been elected as chair of the Asian Professionals National Alliance.

I’d also like to acknowledge the volunteers behind the new Emergency Responder Scheme in Norfolk — a partnership between East of England Ambulance Service NHS Trust (EEAST) and the Norfolk Accident Rescue Service (NARS). In just its first few weeks, more than 20 volunteers from a wide range of backgrounds have already responded to over 50 medical emergencies, providing vital support alongside ambulance crews and helping to save lives.

EEAST is also celebrating national success after Jessica Philpott, a call handler from the Norwich emergency operations centre, was named UK Dispatcher of the Year at the 2025 International Academies of Emergency Dispatch Conference in Glasgow — marking the second year in a row that EEAST has taken home this prestigious award.

Three colleagues from Norfolk and Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust (NSFT) were also honoured at the 2025 Mental Health Awards for their compassion and innovation — from advocacy and lived experience to supporting staff wellbeing and developing new clinical interventions.

Finally, I wanted to congratulate the indomitable Christine Futter MBE and team on the outstanding Norfolk Care Association conference they delivered on 15 October. It was a privilege to attend the conference to listen to the inspiring colleagues in social care and to meet the numerous innovative agencies there.

Thank you, as always, to colleagues across our area for your continued dedication and the difference you make every day. The examples here only scratch the surface of the incredible work taking place across our region — work that is transforming services and improving lives.

Best wishes,

Ed