Struggling local NHS trusts are to be handed emergency funding to help them through the winter, after the region was identified as one of 10 areas at risk of "systemic failure".

National NHS bosses fear ambulances, emergency services and social care in Norfolk and Waveney are all on the brink of collapse.

The region is one of 10 nationwide that have been earmarked for additional financial support ahead of the winter period.

The extra funding will be used to finance plans put in place by regional bosses to relieve pressure through the coming months.

It comes with emergency services and hospitals already warning that they are under "extreme pressure".

The East of England Ambulance Service Trust has warned that it is close to declaring a major incident - urging people to only call for its service in life-threatening situations.

The trust has been forced to plead with staff to work overtime shifts to meet the demand it is facing.

It has also put in place hospital liaison officers to speed up handover times and redirect non-urgent patients to other services.

And the region's integrated care system has also pleaded with people to think carefully about which services they attempt to access.

A spokesperson for the NHS in Norfolk and Waveney said: "We welcome the offer of additional support from NHS England.

"Local health services continue to be extremely busy and staff in every area are continuing to work incredibly hard to make sure that everyone receives the treatment they need as quickly as possible."

An NHS England spokesperson said: “The NHS saw record numbers of patients at major A&E departments last year and the highest ever number of the most serious ambulance callouts this summer, and with the service likely to face another busy winter, it’s right we provide increased support and monitoring to those services which are under the most pressure.

“This comes in addition to our already announced plans to increase numbers of hospital beds and call handlers, so it remains vitally important that people continue to come forward for care when they need it in the usual way by using 111 online or by calling 999 in life-threatening cases."