Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what proportion of the population NHS dentistry has been commissioned to service.

Our aim is to provide easily accessible and high-quality National Health Service dentistry services to people of all ages who need it, including those with more complex needs.

From 1 April 2023 responsibility for commissioning primary care dentistry to meet the needs of the local population has been delegated to all integrated care boards (ICBs) across England. ICBs are responsible for having local processes in place to identify areas of need and determine the priorities for investment.

Our latest Dental Statistics Annual Report for England shows NHS dental activity, as measured by Courses of Treatments delivered, increasing by 23% between 2021/22 and 2022/23. The latest statistics also show that 18.1m adults were seen by an NHS dentist in the 24 months up to 30 June 2023 and 6.4 million children were seen by an NHS dentist in the 12 months up to 30 June 2023.

A dental practice can accept a patient for a course of treatment if they have capacity to deliver that treatment. There are no geographical restrictions on which dental practice a patient may attend, allowing patients the choice of where they receive treatment. Dentists must now update the NHS website with their availability, making access clearer for patients.