The New Reform Plan: A Turning Point in England's Dentistry?

The government has published a plan to recover England’s dentistry, driven by an urgent need for reform. We are aware of the dental challenges you face in the borough and this post will show how this may overcome those barriers.

How will this help me?

The plan addresses the struggles that people face in getting NHS dental care and the need for immediate improvements, with a focus on increased access, prevention and a simpler system.

Mobile dental vans will be introduced into remote areas for underserved communities

Confirmed improvements include:

• An increased capacity to take appointments through supporting the workforce by improving the NHS contracts of dentists,
• Increasing the minimum payment for NHS work,
• Receiving payments for new NHS patients
• Providing a ‘Golden Hello’ incentive for dentists to practice in areas where they are needed the most.

The ‘Smile for Life’ campaign will launch to promote preventive measures for pregnant mothers’ oral health and guide parents on protecting young children’s and baby gums and teeth. This will be delivered through nurseries, early years settings and support for Family Hubs and the settings that provide Start for Life services.

Barking and Dagenham is one of the 75 local authorities eligible for Family Hubs support, so you will find the Smile for Life campaign through the Start for Life services here.

How soon will this be in effect?

Bonus payments of £20K will be offered to practices from this month, but individual practices will decide whether to take the offer and provide increased NHS appointments.

The NHS dentistry budget, this year, will have increased protection against cuts to ensure dental access can continue to be improved, as dentists can practice knowing the security of their finances.

The legislation to unlock dental care professionals’ potential will be brought forward early this year, allowing them to work to their full scope of practice.

The ‘Golden Hello’ will be phased over 3 years, requiring a commitment from the dentist to stay in that area delivering NHS work for at least 3 years and the effectiveness of the scheme will be reviewed before considering the scheme’s extension.

There will also be an expansion to undergraduate training places, more dental therapists and other dental care professionals all by 40% respectively by 2032, with an initial 24% increase to 1,000 dentistry training places by 2029.

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. The plan now includes that any dental contracts that have not fulfilled their contracted amount of NHS activity over 3 consecutive non-COVID-19 years are susceptible to having their activities and finances moved to other practices to ensure patients are being seen on the NHS.

Will my area be getting one of the 240 dentists who're being offered ‘golden hellos’ to work in certain parts of England?

The Government says it will decide on locations ‘in the coming months. It will review the effectiveness of the £20k bonus payments in attracting dentists to ‘underserved’ areas before deciding whether to extend the scheme.

There are clear benefits to implementing this dentistry reform plan. It promises to improve access for neglected individuals and communities, puts a focus on preventive care by supporting children and families, and makes NHS treatment more feasible for dentists, bringing a brighter future for England's oral health.

The new dentistry reform plan is a much-needed step towards improving the oral health landscape in England.

If you are trying to find a dentist to register with, you can find NHS dentists in your local area here. Dentists are required to keep these listings up to date and availability does change.  Sign up for our regular newsletter, to stay informed on the dental services here and many more health and social care updates

This advice is based on a page of the Healthwatch England website, used with thanks - go to https://www.healthwatch.co.uk/advice-and-information/2024-02-21/what-new-dental-recovery-plan-means-you