Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the tendering processes for NHS orthodontist services undertaken by Care Commissioning Groups, how many and what proportion of tender contracts have gone to (a) consultant-led and (b) non-consultant specialist-led orthodontic services.

Clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) are not responsible for commissioning dental services including orthodontic services. NHS England commissions such services directly.

NHS England advises it does not hold information centrally on how many and what proportion of tender contracts have gone to consultant-led and non-consultant specialist-led orthodontic services or the proportion of contracts for National Health Service orthodontist services tendered by NHS England which go to orthodontists with wheelchair accessible premises.

No estimate is therefore possible of the proportion of orthodontic services that have wheelchair accessible premises.