Welcome to my July blog.
This month, I’m using my blog to reflect on what was a truly inspiring Health and Care Expo 2026. The event celebrated the very best of health and care across Norfolk and Suffolk, showcasing the innovation, collaboration and commitment that are improving the lives of the people and communities we serve. As the first major event hosted by our new NHS Norfolk and Suffolk ICB, it was about far more than sharing good practice. It was an opportunity to strengthen our sense of belonging as one system, celebrate the extraordinary breadth of talent across our new geography, and raise our collective ambition for what we can achieve together.
Before I do that, however, I’m delighted to share three significant investments that demonstrate our shared ambition to improve outcomes for people across Norfolk and Suffolk.
As the strategic commissioner for our system, every investment we make is an opportunity to prevent ill health, intervene earlier, reduce inequalities and help people live healthier, more independent lives.
Over the next four years, we will invest more than £20 million to expand Mental Health Support Teams across Norfolk and Suffolk, ensuring every education setting has access to dedicated NHS mental health support and giving more children and young people the best possible start in life.
We’re also investing £8 million through the national Obesity Pathway Innovation Programme to create one of the NHS’s most advanced and integrated obesity pathways. Over the next three years, more than 18,000 additional people will benefit from joined-up prevention, behavioural support, specialist care, digital innovation and community-based services.
Alongside this, we have approved a recurrent £2.5 million investment in community stroke rehabilitation, enabling around 40 additional specialist staff to help more people recover sooner, regain their independence and return home more quickly after stroke.
Together, these investments span the life course, from giving children the best start, to supporting healthier lives through prevention, to helping people recover well after serious illness. They reflect our commitment to delivering more care closer to home, tackling health inequalities and improving outcomes in line with our Population Health and Commissioning Strategy and the Government’s 10-Year Health Plan.
None of this can be achieved by the NHS alone. It depends on strong partnerships and reflects the values that guide everything we do: Kindness, Collaboration and Ambition.
Those same values were evident throughout Health and Care Expo 2026. As I reflect on what was a truly memorable day, I’d like to share some of the moments that stayed with me most, using the four ambitions of our Population Health and Commissioning Strategy to highlight the remarkable work taking place across Norfolk and Suffolk.
Delivering more care closer to home
One of the things that struck me most during Expo2026 was how many examples there were of care moving closer to people’s homes and communities.
The Hospital to Community award winner, Laura Tooth, demonstrated how partnership working can transform women’s health. By working alongside primary care, acute clinicians, local communities and voluntary sector partners, Laura has helped establish Women’s Health Hubs across every Primary Care Network in Norfolk and Waveney, bringing more services out of hospital and into neighbourhoods where they are easier to access.
The Partnership with People and Communities award recognised the remarkable volunteers and organisations behind Botesdale – A Community that Cares. Their work is a powerful reminder that improving health isn’t always about creating new services. Sometimes it is about helping communities support one another. From tackling loneliness and digital exclusion to creating dementia-friendly activities and improving access to healthcare, more than 50 volunteers have shown what can be achieved when local people become partners in improving health and wellbeing.
Another inspirational example came from Kate Ward, winner of the Inspirational Leader Award, whose leadership transformed Carlton Court Hospital into an integrated community rehabilitation unit. Her work has helped around 80% of patients return home following illness while embracing a true “home first” approach that supports independence and reduces reliance on hospital care.
Geoff Stevens from Pathways Care Farm, runner-up in the same category, also demonstrated how innovative community organisations are helping people rebuild confidence, improve wellbeing and reconnect with their communities in ways that traditional healthcare alone could never achieve.
Together, these examples demonstrated that delivering more care closer to home isn’t just an ambition within our Population Health and Commissioning Strategy – it’s already becoming a reality across Norfolk and Suffolk.
Moving from sickness to prevention
If there was one theme that ran throughout Expo2026, it was prevention.
The Treatment to Prevention award winner, Active NoW, perfectly embodies our Population Health and Commissioning Strategy. Through a single referral pathway linking healthcare professionals with local physical activity opportunities, the programme has already supported more than 13,000 referrals, helping thousands of people become more active, healthier and more confident while reducing health inequalities.
Prevention wasn’t confined to a single award category – it was woven throughout the conversations taking place across the Expo.
Dr Tom Pearson challenged us to think differently about rural communities and the role farmers play in producing healthier food, while Professor Frankie Swords spoke passionately about prevention, partnership working and tackling rural health inequalities from both her local and national perspective.
The outside stage also showcased prevention in action. Bob Groome’s moving story of quitting smoking with support from Feel Good Suffolk demonstrated the life-changing difference prevention services can make. By stopping smoking he has improved his health, saved enough money to retire a year earlier than planned and has since continued his wellbeing journey through the county’s weight management programme – a wonderful example of how investing in prevention changes lives.
Making better use of digital and data
If there was one thing impossible to miss throughout Expo2026, it was the pace of innovation transforming health and care across Norfolk and Suffolk.
The Analogue to Digital award recognised the ESNEFT Parkinson’s team, whose digitally enabled pathway allows clinicians to monitor patients remotely between appointments using smartphone technology. It is helping people receive more personalised care while reducing unnecessary hospital visits and making better use of specialist expertise.
Equally impressive was the Research and Innovation winner, Dr Wendy MacNab, whose pioneering work has transformed endometrial cancer diagnosis by replacing invasive investigations with a simple swab test, delivering quicker diagnoses, a better patient experience and improved use of NHS resources.
Throughout the Innovation Zone, delegates explored how artificial intelligence, virtual reality, digital therapeutics and population health intelligence are beginning to reshape healthcare.
One particularly thought-provoking session came from Dr Jordan Tsigarides, who explored how virtual reality is being used through the Rural Minds project to help professionals better understand the unique mental health challenges faced by farming communities. By placing people into immersive real-life situations, the project is helping tackle stigma, improve understanding and encourage earlier conversations about mental health.
A fascinating keynote session from Professor Dhakshana Sivayoganathan looked ahead to the opportunities presented by AI, digital leadership and innovation, while Andy Wilkins challenged us to think about how technology can help us move from fragmented services towards genuinely person-centred health ecosystems.
Working with partners to support wider social and economic development
Perhaps the greatest success of Expo2026 wasn’t any single presentation or award – it was seeing more than 1,500 people from across the NHS, local government, universities, charities, businesses, social enterprises and community organisations coming together with a shared purpose.
The inaugural Health and Care Awards perfectly reflected that spirit. With 176 nominations and 80 finalists representing every corner of our system, the quality of entries demonstrated just how much innovation, compassion and partnership exists across Norfolk and Suffolk.
One particularly moving winner was Breaking Barriers, recognised in the Supporting Young People category. Their work supporting children affected by the imprisonment of a family member reminds us that improving health often means addressing the wider circumstances that shape people’s lives.
Likewise, Expo’s Unsung Hero award winner, Donny Brown, showed the extraordinary impact one individual can have. Through volunteering, peer support and lived experience, he has helped countless people through some of the most difficult moments of their lives, demonstrating that kindness remains one of the most powerful interventions in healthcare.
Whether it was NHS organisations, local authorities, charities, universities, social enterprises or community groups, the Expo demonstrated that improving population health is something we achieve together, not in isolation.
Celebrating our people
As inspiring as the awards were, what I’ll remember most from Expo2026 wasn’t the trophies – it was the people.
Throughout the day I had the opportunity to visit as many of the exhibition stands as I could, and I came away incredibly proud of the breadth and diversity of work taking place across Norfolk and Suffolk. Within a few minutes I could move from conversations about artificial intelligence, virtual reality and digital innovation to charities helping people find temporary care for beloved pets while they are in hospital, creative health projects using music and dance to improve wellbeing, community organisations tackling loneliness, and volunteers supporting people through some of the most difficult moments of their lives.
Every stand had a story. Every conversation reinforced that improving health is about far more than healthcare alone.
One of my personal highlights was hearing from Michaela Strachan as she took part in a conversation on the outside stage. Her reflections on finding our own “pockets of joy”, embracing change and recognising the importance of nature, movement and community in maintaining good health were a timely reminder that wellbeing is shaped by much more than medicine alone.
Another moving moment came from our ICB colleague, Andy Wall, who courageously shared his experience of surviving a cardiac arrest and encouraged delegates to complete the British Heart Foundation’s free 15-minute RevivR training. Regular readers will know this is a cause I’m incredibly passionate about. Andy’s courage in sharing his story was a powerful reminder that learning CPR really can save a life.
The awards ceremony itself was a fitting finale. Seeing more than 300 colleagues rise to their feet to celebrate the achievements of our finalists and winners was a powerful reminder that there is so much to be proud of across Norfolk and Suffolk. The warmth, encouragement and genuine joy in the room reflected the very best of our health and care system.
I would also like to thank Susannah Howard and everyone involved in organising Expo2026. Delivering an event of this scale is no small undertaking, and the team’s hard work, professionalism and attention to detail made the day such a success. My thanks also go to our own Communications and Engagement team for helping to host the outside stage, support speakers and somehow still find the energy to compère the awards ceremony!
As I drove home, I felt an overwhelming sense of pride. Pride in what we’ve already achieved together, pride in the extraordinary people I met throughout the day, and confidence that our greatest achievements are still ahead of us. Expo2026 wasn’t simply a celebration of where we’ve been; it was a powerful reminder of what’s possible when talented people and organisations come together with a shared purpose. I’m already looking forward to seeing where that journey takes us next.
Best wishes,
Ed