Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to improve the availability of dental practices offering NHS services in West Dorset constituency.

The Government’s ambition is to make sure that everyone who needs dental treatment can access a dentist. We will tackle the immediate dentistry crisis with a rescue plan to provide 700,000 more urgent dental appointments and to recruit new dentists to the areas that need them most. To rebuild dentistry in the long term, we will reform the dental contract, with a shift to focus on prevention and the retention of National Health Service dentists.

On 1 April 2023 responsibility for commissioning NHS dentistry was delegated to the integrated care boards across England. NHS Dorset is responsible for commissioning primary care services, including NHS dentistry, to meet the needs of the local populations, and for determining the priorities for investment in their area. Patients unable to access an urgent dental appointment directly through an NHS dental practice are advised to contact NHS 111 for assistance.