The number of people waiting more than 18 weeks for mental health treatment at Norfolk and Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust (NSFT) has fallen by 80.8% since April 2024, the Health Overview Select Committee heard on 19 March 2026.

At its peak, 1,572 patients were waiting longer than 18 weeks for treatment. That figure has now dropped to 302. The number waiting more than 52 weeks for treatment has also fallen sharply, from 765 to 127.

However, members of the public who spoke at the meeting painted a more difficult picture. Natalie McLellan, from the Campaign to Save Mental Health Services in Norfolk and Suffolk, told councillors that service users still face difficulties accessing support, and that poor record-keeping and overstretched community teams remain ongoing problems.

Local councillor Emma Corlett said residents in her division with severe and chronic mental illness were struggling to get timely help, with delays in crisis responses and concerns about the dignity of people waiting for inpatient beds.

Caroline Donovan, Chief Executive of NSFT, acknowledged that none of the concerns raised were new to the Trust and that improvement work was continuing. She confirmed that all overdue serious incident investigations were due for completion by June 2026.

On a positive note, the Trust announced it recorded zero out-of-area and zero out-of-Trust inpatient placements on 6 January 2026 — described as a long-standing goal. Nursing vacancies have fallen from 20% to 11.8%, and overall staff turnover has dropped from 17% to 10% over two years.

Seven locations across Norfolk and Suffolk have been identified for new Neighbourhood Mental Health Centres, which would offer walk-in help and extended hours serving populations of 30,000 to 50,000 people each, with phased delivery planned over five years.

The Trust has also submitted bids for two Mental Health Emergency Departments worth a combined £15 million over five years, though these remain subject to national approval.

The committee voted unanimously to write to the Minister for Health expressing concern about the impact of national cost-cutting measures on mental health services.