Norfolk's most senior coroner has urged the government to act on a national shortage of mental health beds following the death of a pensioner who was found on the beach.

Malcolm Taylor, of Grebe Close in Bradwell, was discovered dead on Gorleston beach on the morning of March 4. He was 76.

An inquest into his death last month was told of delays in assessing his mental health due to a lack of hospital beds.

On March 3, while he was still waiting for a bed to be allocated, Mr Taylor drove to Gorleston beach and entered the sea, with his body found the following morning.

The tragedy prompted Jacqueline Lake, senior coroner for Norfolk, to issue a prevention of future deaths report to the Department of Health and Social Care.

Jacqueline Lake, senior coroner for NorfolkJacqueline Lake, senior coroner for Norfolk (Image: Newsquest)

In this report, Mrs Lake highlighted her concerns about the availability of mental health beds in the county.

It is the third time this year alone that a coroner in Norfolk or Suffolk has highlighted bed shortages in the mental health sector.

The report states the Norfolk and Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust had introduced a number of measures to try and increase availability, but there were still "insufficient beds available to meet patient need".

A government spokesman said: "Our deepest sympathies are with Malcolm's loved ones and all those affected by his death.

"We know too many people with mental health issues are not getting the support or care they need, which is why we will fix our broken system to ensure we give mental health the attention and focus it deserves.

"As part of the government's mission to reduce the lives lost to suicide, the 8,500 new mental health workers we will recruit will be specifically trained to support people at risk.

"We will also reform the mental health act, to ensure people with the most severe mental health conditions get better, more personalised care."