Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what discussions he has had with the Devon Integrated Care Board on access to non-emergency NHS dental appointments for (a) children and (b) elderly people in Torridge.

We are aware of the challenges faced in accessing a National Health Service dentist across the country, and we are taking steps to address this, including by increasing the availability of urgent dental care and reforming the dental contract.

The responsibility for commissioning primary care dentistry to meet the needs of the local population is delegated to integrated care boards (ICBs) across England. There are a number of forums for engagement, and NHS England regions lead on engagement with ICBs. For Torridge, this is NHS England South West.

We have asked ICBs to commission extra urgent, non-emergency, dental appointments to make sure that patients can get the treatment they require. ICBs have been making extra urgent dental appointments available since April 2025. NHS Devon ICB, which includes the Torridge and Tavistock constituency, has been asked to deliver 24,269 additional urgent dental appointments as part of the scheme.