JSNA Blog - June

Welcome to the JSNA blog for June 2026

As always, we welcome comments, feedback and suggestions.

Photo by Nat at Suffolk County Council

We welcome your photos of Suffolk to use in a future blog!

Email us at: knowledgeandIntelligence@suffolk.gov.uk

Mental Health Needs Assessment

What it tells us—and why it matters for our communities

The Suffolk Mental Health Needs Assessment (MHNA) 2026 provides a comprehensive overview of mental health need, inequalities, risk factors, service use and outcomes across Suffolk. The assessment brings together quantitative data, national and local evidence, service intelligence and lived experience insight to support planning, commissioning and partnership working across the system.

Read the full Mental Health Needs Assessment 2026 or discover more about the report in the drop down sections below.

Mental health touches every part of life—our relationships, our work, our communities—but it isn’t experienced equally across Suffolk.

The Mental Health Needs Assessment (MHNA) brings together the best available evidence to understand what’s happening in our communities. It looks at:
• how many people are experiencing mental ill health
• who is most affected
• what’s driving those patterns
• how services are used
• and what local people say about their experiences

It takes a life‑course view—from children and young people through to older adults—and looks beyond healthcare to the wider factors that shape mental health, such as housing, work and relationships.

The MHNA gives Suffolk a shared, updated evidence‑base to:
• focus on prevention as well as treatment
• reduce unfair and avoidable inequalities
• build a system that is easier to navigate and better connected

In short, it gives us a clear, shared picture of mental health and wellbeing across Suffolk.

Because good decisions depend on good evidence.

The MHNA is part of Suffolk’s Joint Strategic Needs Assessment (JSNA)—a statutory responsibility that underpins how local health, care and support services are planned.

It helps us to:
• identify where need is greatest
• understand inequalities between communities
• make sure resources are targeted where they can have the biggest impact
• support partners to work together around shared priorities

Mental ill-health affects many people across Suffolk

Mental ill-health is common and prevalent across different age groups. It’s not a niche issue—it’s something that touches many families and communities across the county.

Patterns of mental ill health aren’t evenly distributed

Where you live, and the circumstances you face, strongly influence your mental health. Some communities experience higher levels of need than others, reflecting wider inequalities.

The assessment highlights:
• higher premature mortality for people with severe mental illness
• persistent levels of self-harm and crisis among children and young people

Need is not always visible in services

In some cases, recorded service use is lower than we would expect given the level of need.

That matters, because it suggests:
• some people aren’t getting the support they need
• inequalities can be hidden if we only look at service data

People don’t always find the system easy to navigate

Residents told us:
• it can be hard to know where to go for help
• waiting for support can feel like a difficult and unsupported gap
• some groups still face barriers to access

Mental health is shaped by everyday life

Mental health is closely linked to the conditions people live in, including:
• poverty and financial insecurity
• housing and environment
• employment
• relationships and social connection
• experiences of trauma

Improving mental health isn’t just about services—it’s about the wider factors that shape people’s lives.

You can view the data dashboard built to support the Mental Health Needs Assessment below.

The dashboard includes data for both Suffolk and Norfolk. We’ve worked closely with colleagues in Norfolk, who are developing their own needs assessment as part of their statutory JSNA. Together, both needs assessments will inform the joint mental health strategy for the Norfolk and Suffolk Integrated Care Board.

View the profile and our other JSNA products using the JSNA searchable index below:

Four you - Recent national publications:

Young people with mental health conditions are now more likely to be NEET: This analysis from the Health Foundation examines the relationship between the number of young people who are not in education, employment or training (NEET) and the prevalence of mental health conditions.
Alcohol-specific deaths in the UK: registered in 2024:This Office for National Statistics release notes 9,809 deaths from alcohol-specific causes were registered in the UK, the lowest number since 2021 (9,641 deaths), and the rate of alcohol-specific deaths (14.8 per 100,000 people) decreased to its lowest recorded number since 2020 (13.9 deaths per 100,000 people).
Births in England and Wales: 2025: This Office for National Statistics release looks at births in England and Wales for the latest reporting period. They highlight that there were 585,396 live births in England and Wales in 2025, a 1.6% decrease from 594,677 in 2024.
The GLP-1 Revolution: Implications for Health, Inequality and the Food System: This briefing report from The Food Foundation explores current and projected levels of uptake for GLP-1s, the potential impact on health inequities and on food businesses, as well as gaps in the current evidence base

This month the JSNA workplan is focused on:

Drafting a men's health profile
Drafting a women's health profile
Drafting a gambling profile
Drafting an inclusion health profile
Scoping new profiles on the end of life, alcohol, substance misuse, Sexually Transmitted Infections (STIs), and respiratory health
Planning for the Annual Public Health Report 2026

The Suffolk Observatory

The Suffolk Observatory contains all Suffolk’s vital statistics. It is the one-stop-shop for data, statistics and reports all about Suffolk provided by a variety of organisations.

Through data, reports and analysis, the Suffolk Observatory provides a comprehensive picture of the county and is a great source for useful facts and figures that will help you write reports and presentations, inform strategic and business planning, prepare funding applications or support academic research.

Take a look at the SODA reports page for all the recent publications by the Suffolk Office of Data and Analytics.

Published recently:

Update on DWP + HMRC benefits in Suffolk (April 2025)

JSNA Blog - June

Mental Health Needs Assessment

What is the Mental Health Needs Assessment?

Why do we need it?

What are the key messages?

Key takeaway

You can view the data dashboard built to support the Mental Health Needs Assessment below.

Four you - Recent national publications:

This month the JSNA workplan is focused on:

The Suffolk Observatory