Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many NHS dentists his Department plans to recruit in (a) England and (b) Dorset over the next 12 months.

As independent providers of NHS services, general dental practices are responsible for the recruitment of staff to meet the conditions of their National Health Service contract. No formal assessment has been made of the adequacy of the number of NHS dentists in West Dorset.

However, NHS England and NHS Improvement are working with Health Education England and Bristol and Peninsula Dental schools as part of the South West Dental Reform programme to address the challenges facing NHS dentistry in the region. The programme will be look at innovative ways to attract dental staff to areas including Dorset.