Source · Select Committees · Public Accounts Committee
21st Report - Fixing NHS Dentistry
Public Accounts Committee
HC 648
Published 4 April 2025
Conclusions (4)
18
Conclusion
Accepted in Part
The initial announcement of the dental recovery plan claimed that its aim was to “significantly expand access so that everyone who needs to see a dentist will be able to”.51 However, that ambition was never aligned to the actual targets of the plan, as an additional 1.5 million courses of …
Government Response Summary
The government commits to NHSE carrying out analysis of the New Patient Premium, Golden Hellos, and UDA uplift initiatives, with data collected by July 2025 and a detailed breakdown provided by Autumn 2025, which will help assess the plan's impact.
22
Conclusion
Accepted in Part
Responsibility for commissioning dental services was delegated to integrated care boards (ICBs) in April 2023.62 Within the national dental contractual framework, ICBs have some flexibilities that NHSE says should help them to tailor services to meet specific population needs.63 This includes the ability to commission additional services, and to support …
Government Response Summary
The government acknowledges the importance of strengthening engagement with ICBs and reaffirms their crucial role in local decision-making and dental contract reform. NHSE is actively engaging ICBs on policy implementation and will further enhance this through engagement and wider consultation on 2026 Payment and Quality reforms.
24
Conclusion
Accepted in Part
The idea of identifying ICBs to commission mobile dental vans seems a particular example of an ineffective interaction between a national policy and an appropriate measure on the ground. NHSE and DHSC identified twelve ICBs to deliver the initiative,69 but none of these ICBs have since chosen to invest in …
Government Response Summary
The government acknowledges the need to strengthen relationships with ICBs and reaffirms the importance of local decision-making. NHSE has taken active steps to engage ICBs on policy implementation and upcoming reforms, including future engagement and a wider consultation for 2026 Payment and Quality reforms.
29
Conclusion
Accepted in Part
The NAO reported that in 2023–24 there were 24,193 dentists providing some NHS dental care in England, a 2% decline on the total since 2019–20.87 NHSE data outlines that there is a large workforce gap that exists in NHS dentistry, with over 5,500 vacancies across the entire dental workforce in …
Government Response Summary
The government states it is addressing immediate challenges by delivering 700,000 extra urgent dental appointments from April 2025 and implementing the Golden Hello scheme, which has recruited 45 dentists and has 250 posts advertised. It also mentions longer-term plans for contract reform, a 10 Year Health Plan (Summer 2025), and a refreshed long-term workforce plan to be published.