Population Health Improvement Plan

The NHS Essex Population Health Improvement Plan sets out how health and care partners across Essex will improve health, reduce inequalities and provide more joined-up care closer to home over the next five years. The Population Health Improvement Plan for Essex focuses on prevention, supporting people earlier and making NHS services more sustainable for the future.

Why does this matter?

People in Essex are living longer, but not everyone is living those extra years in good health.

Some communities experience much poorer health than others, and more people are living with long-term conditions like heart disease, diabetes and poor mental health. At the same time, NHS services are under pressure, with long waits for some care

About Essex

Our population

• Just under 2 million people live in Essex
• The population is growing and ageing, people aged 65+ will increase significantly. The number of residents aged 65–89 is expected to increase by around 20% by 2034 meaning demand for health and care services will continue to increase. 
• Around 220,000 people live in the most deprived areas.
• Health outcomes vary widely depending on where you live
• In some areas, the gap in life expectancy between the most and least deprived communities is over 12 years for men. 
• Some groups in Essex face greater barriers to good health and accessing services, including carers, disabled people, LGBTQ+ residents, veterans and those in vulnerable living situations.
• Around 165,000 residents provide unpaid care. 
• Around 309,000 residents live with a disability. 
• Around 27,000 residents identify as lesbian, gay or bisexual (in ECC area), 34,500 in Greater Essex. 
• Around 51,000 residents are military veterans. 
• Around 2,800 households are living in temporary accommodation. 
• Around 7,500 migrants in vulnerable circumstances live across Essex. 

Our biggest health challenges

• Heart disease, cancer and respiratory illness are the leading causes of early death
• More people are living with long-term conditions

Most common long-term conditions affecting people in Essex:

• hypertension (high blood pressure) 
• obesity 
• depression 
• diabetes 
• asthma 
• chronic kidney disease 
• dementia

Many of these conditions are linked to lifestyle factors and ageing. 

Health behaviours driving poor health 

Several behaviours contribute significantly to illness and health inequalities: 

• smoking 
• unhealthy weight 
• physical inactivity 
• harmful alcohol use. 

• Many people spend up to 20 years in poor health later in life
• People living with severe mental illness die 15–20 years earlier than the general population. 

Improving access to mental health services and support is a key priority. 

Our biggest health challenges for children and young people under the age of 25

• More than 50,000 children and young people in Essex have Special Educational Needs or Disabilities (SEND). 
• Around one third of children aged 10–11 are overweight or obese. 

Early support for children and families is important for improving lifelong health outcomes. 

NHS activity across Essex 

Each year, the NHS in Essex currently serves its populations through: 

• nearly 11 million GP appointments 
• over 730,000 A&E attendances 
• over 3 million outpatient appointments 
• over 300,000 non-emergency operations 

What people have told us matters

The Population Health Plan for Essex aligns with the national NHS 10-Year Health Plan and is shaped by what over 500 residents, staff and community groups in Essex have already told us through local engagement, bringing together national ambition with local priorities.

People told us they want:

• Care closer to home
• Faster access to services
• Better mental health support
• More focus on prevention
• Action to reduce health inequalities

Supporting better services across the life course

The plan is structured around six different areas of focus to help organise services and prevention activities.  The six areas are:

• Start Well: Helping children and young people get the best start in life
• Live Well: Supporting people to stay healthy and independent for longer
• Feel Well: Improving mental health and emotional wellbeing
• Age Well: Helping people stay well as they grow older, especially those living with frailty
• Die Well: Providing compassionate care at the end of life
• Respond Well: Making sure people get the right care quickly in an emergency

How will this happen?

We will support this through:

• Investing in our workforce
• Using digital tools to improve access and coordination
• Working closely with local councils and communities
• Using data to target support where it’s needed most

What early changes can people expect in the first year?

In the first phase of the plan, the focus will be on making early, practical changes that improve care and set the foundations for long-term transformation across Essex.

This will include developing a stronger neighbourhood health model, starting with better support for people living with frailty, so more care can be provided closer to home. Community services will be reviewed to make sure they are consistent, accessible and meeting local needs.

Reducing long waiting times will be a key priority, particularly for planned care, children’s services and neurodiversity assessments alongside improving cancer outcomes through earlier diagnosis.

There will also be a stronger focus on urgent and emergency care, including better mental health support for people in crisis and more consistent access to talking therapies for those who need them most.

Improving quality and safety will remain central, with a review of perinatal services, while early work will focus on planning how NHS buildings and facilities can better support more care closer to home.

Alongside this, work will focus on establishing the new NHS Essex organisation, building strong partnerships and putting in place the foundations needed to deliver lasting change.

Overall, this first phase is about taking clear action on the issues that matter most to people now, while building a more joined-up, community-focused and sustainable health and care system for the future.

How will we measure success at the end of the five years?

By the end of the five years, success will mean that people in Essex will benefit from health services that are easier to access, closer to home and better for everyone.

Health will be fairer across the county, with fewer people dying early from conditions like heart disease, cancer and lung illness. More children will have a better start in life, and more people will take up screening and vaccinations to stay well.

Certain aspects of care will have shifted out of hospitals and into local communities, with more support available earlier to prevent illness and avoid crisis. People with long-term conditions will get better ongoing support, helping them stay healthy and independent.

Waiting times will be shorter across NHS services, including mental health, children’s services and diagnostics, and more people will report a better overall experience of care.

At the same time, NHS services in Essex will be more sustainable for the future, making the best use of public money, reducing reliance on costly hospital care where it isn’t needed and investing in modern buildings and facilities.

Overall, success means a system that helps people stay well for longer, provides high-quality care when it’s needed, and works fairly and efficiently for everyone in Essex.

Next steps

We will continue to work with residents, staff and partners to shape how services develop making sure they reflect what matters most to our communities.

You can download a full copy of the population health improvement plan by clicking the link below. This will open as a word document. If you require an alternative format please contact us.

Population Health Improvement Plan (PHIP) for Essex (3MB docx)