Healthcare provision in the East of England

There will be a 90 minute Westminster Hall debate on Healthcare provision in the East of England on 3 September 2024 at 9.30am. The debate will be led by Clive Lewis, Labour Party MP for Norwich South.

The NHS England East of England regional team is responsible for the quality, financial and operational performance of all NHS organisations in the region. It works in partnership with local integrated care systems, integrated care boards and acute trusts. A full list of NHS organisations in the East of England can be found on the NHS England website.

• Both male and female life expectancy at birth in the East of England were higher than the national average in 2020-22. Life expectancy at birth for males in the East of England was 79.8 years and for females it was 83.5 years. Both rates were significantly higher than the England average of 78.9 years for males and 82.8 years for females. However, concerns have been raised about variation in life expectancy within the East of England.
• Between 2010/11 to 2022/23, in most years, spending per head in the East of England was lower than for other regions. This may be a consequence of health funding formulas in England which allocate funding according to a weighted population. The weighted population is adjusted according to factors such as the age profile, deprivation and health needs of an area.
• The NHS waiting list for the East of England was just over 932,400 in June 2024, more than double the figure observed in June 2019. The NHS standard is for 92% of cases on the waiting list involve waits under 18 weeks. In June 2024, just over 55% of the cases on the waiting list in the East of England were waiting less than 18 weeks. This is below the national average of 58.9% in June 2024.
• The East of England Ambulance Service has not met the national targets for average response times for category 1 (life-threatening) and category 2 (emergency) calls since mid-2021. However, performance has tended to improve from December 2022 onwards.
• Across the East of England region there are an average of 48 NHS dentists per 100,000 people. There are significant variations within the region, ranging from an average of 75 NHS dentists per 100,000 people in the Herts Valley NHS area, to 31 per 100,000 in Norfolk and Waveney. In July 2024, the Secretary for Health and Social Care, Wes Streeting, described Norfolk and Waveney as “the Sahara of dental deserts”.
• The East of England All Party Parliamentary Group has highlighted the challenges of the ageing population in the region and the effects of climate change.

The Library has a range of health data dashboards which provide data at constituency level with the inclusion of regional and national figures for comparison. For example, if selecting a constituency area in the East of England, the dashboard will also provide details for the East of England for certain variables.

The following health dashboards may be of interest:

• Constituency data: health conditions
• Constituency data: Dentists and dental practices
• Constituency data: GPs and GP practices