What the new dental recovery plan means for you

On 7 February 2024 the Government published a dental care recovery plan. This is an issue we’ve been campaigning on for many years, as it’s the second top problem reported to us by the public. 

Check out how this might affect you and how NHS dentistry appointments will hopefully become easier to get.

I haven’t been able to find a dentist offering any NHS appointments for a long time – does this plan mean I’ll be able to?

The plan recognises that your ability to get NHS dental care has been difficult, particularly since the pandemic. The plan proposes a variety of initiatives, backed by £200m of Government funding, to offer up to 2.5m appointments to people across England:

• A ‘new patient payment’ - like a bonus – of between £15 and 50 - will be paid to dentists for every new person they see on the NHS if the person has been unable to be seen in the past two years. 
• New mobile dental vans will see and treat people in 12 remote areas.
• A £20k ‘golden hello’ payment will be offered to 240 dentists to work in ‘dental deserts’ if they agree to stay in the area for three years.
• An increase in the minimum amount of payment all dentists get for NHS work.

How can I find out if dentists in my area have taken up these bonus payments and are offering more NHS appointments?

The Government says it will soon roll out a national marketing campaign to encourage people who've struggled to find an NHS dentist in recent years to contact dental practices. 

You can look up the NHS website’s ‘find a dentist’ tool to see if your practice is taking on new patients. 

Dentists must keep these listings up to date, but availability can change quickly, so you may need to ring around. 

Find out how to get an NHS dentist. 

When will extra appointments start to be offered?

Bonus payments will be offered to dentists from March 2024, but it’s down to individual practices to decide if they will take up these incentives to provide more NHS appointments. You may need to check at various times throughout the year with different practices. 

Will I have to prove that I haven’t been able to be seen on the NHS in the past two years?

It’s likely new patients will have to sign a form declaring that they haven’t been seen on the NHS for the past two years, if the dental practice they use is claiming the bonuses. 

Are the new patient appointments for adult or child patients?

Extra appointments are aimed at both adults and children.

Do I have to use the dental practice nearest me?

If you are easily able (and can afford) to travel outside of your area, you can try to be seen at any NHS dental practice in England. 

Dentists don’t work the same way as GPs – they get paid per treatment, not per patient and don’t formally ‘register’ patients. Dentists may agree to see you regularly and put you on an informal list, but they are under no obligation to keep seeing you as an NHS patient permanently.