Articles about health from Norfolk County Council
Norfolk's Health Overview Select Committee has agreed to prioritise scrutiny of dentistry access and the health elements of the county's SEND Reform Plan. The committee also confirmed its forward work programme at its first meeting of the new council year on 16 July 2026.
Source: Health Overview Select Committee
A dedicated dementia bus will travel across Norfolk from 11 May 2026, offering training to help people better understand and support those living with the condition. The initiative was announced by the Cabinet Member for Adult Social Care at the April cabinet meeting.
Source: Cabinet
Norfolk County Council has formally adopted a new framework requiring health considerations to be built into all major decisions — from road schemes to planning policy. Health Impact Assessments will become mandatory for major strategies and infrastructure projects, with a pilot running in 2026–27.
Source: Cabinet
Norfolk County Council voted down a motion calling for a review of mental health provision for 16-18-year-olds not in education, employment or training (NEET). The motion, which failed 30 votes to 21, would have required the council to report back to Cabinet within six months on gaps in support.
Source: County Council
Norfolk and Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust has dramatically reduced the number of patients waiting more than 18 weeks for mental health treatment, but scrutiny councillors heard that community teams remain overstretched and some services still need improvement.
Source: Health Overview Select Committee
Norfolk councillors voted unanimously to write to Ministers calling for national oversight of Prevention of Future Deaths notices, after concerns were raised about inconsistency in how coroners apply the system across different regions.
Source: Health Overview Select Committee
The Norfolk and Waveney Integrated Care Board is reviewing its outreach health services for vulnerable and underserved groups, with public engagement planned for summer 2026 and all current services guaranteed until at least April 2027.
Source: Health Overview Select Committee
Nearly two-thirds of Norfolk patients are now using the NHS App, and more than 4,000 NHS staff access the county's Shared Care Record every month, as the region pushes forward with its digital health transformation programme.
Source: Health Overview Select Committee
Norfolk's health partnership has agreed to make its Mental Health Summit an annual event and to expand the Mindful Norfolk programme across the whole county. The initiative trains everyday community figures — such as pub landlords, hairdressers, and sports coaches — to have supportive conversations about mental health.
Source: Integrated Care Partnership
Health and council leaders have endorsed a Neighbourhood Plan that aims to join up local services around individual residents rather than making people navigate separate organisations. The plan will move into a phased rollout across Norfolk and Waveney during 2026/27.
Source: Integrated Care Partnership
Norfolk's Health and Wellbeing Board has backed Year Two of the county's Autism Strategy, which extends specialist training, grows library support groups and helps autistic people find work. The plan runs from August 2025 to July 2026.
Source: Health and Wellbeing Board
Almost one in three Norfolk residents will be aged 65 or over within 15 years, a new public health report warns. While overall life expectancy in Norfolk is above the England average, healthy life expectancy is not — and people in poorer areas face shorter, less healthy lives.
Source: Health and Wellbeing Board
Norfolk's Better Care Fund programme is meeting national targets, with 85% of patients leaving hospital on their discharge-ready date and fewer older people moving into long-term residential care. The board has signed off the Quarter 3 report and begun planning for 2026-27.
Source: Health and Wellbeing Board
Norfolk's Health and Wellbeing Board has endorsed a new Population Health and Commissioning Strategy covering 2026 to 2031, which will guide NHS decisions across a proposed combined Norfolk and Suffolk Integrated Care Board. The strategy focuses on prevention, reducing health inequalities and improving healthy life expectancy.
Source: Health and Wellbeing Board
Norfolk's Director of Public Health has presented her annual report to Cabinet, warning that nearly a third of the county's population will be aged over 65 by 2040. The report calls for action on preventing conditions including diabetes, cardiovascular disease and falls to help people live healthier lives for longer.
Source: Cabinet
Norfolk Fire and Rescue Service has adopted a new five-year plan that standardises emergency response times to 10 minutes for any incident where lives may be at risk. Cabinet endorsed the plan at its March meeting, with Full Council expected to formally adopt it later in the month.
Source: Cabinet