The British Dental Association (BDA) has urged the government to act quickly to support the service.
The data follows reports of over 100 people queueing as early as 2.30 am to get a place at an NHS dentist in Warrington. According to the BDA, this echoes the scenes from Bristol in February 2024, and in Leigh and Kings Lynn in 2023.
The data has revealed that, of those who failed to secure care:
- Eleven per cent were recorded as going private
- 1.6 per cent reported going to A&E
- 1.1 per cent reported going to their GP
- A further 78.5 per cent did nothing
The BDA has warned this will lead to greater burdens on the health service.
The data showed that of patients who tried to access NHS dentistry but did not have a dentist, 33.5 per cent reported having an urgent need for NHS care. Of these, 21.3 per cent stated they were in pain.
The association welcomed the tone set by the Labour government, which accepted that NHS dentistry is “broken”, and stated that closing the oral health gap represents a “moral crusade". The professional body has said urgency and ambition are required.
Eddie Crouch, chair of the BDA, said, “This is a reminder that for new patients NHS dentistry has effectively ceased to exist.
“This crisis is piling pressure across our health service, forcing some to go private, while others in agony simply forgo needed care. We will keep seeing desperate scenes outside dental practices the length and breadth of this country until we see real reform.”
An NHS spokesperson said, "The NHS is determined to get dentistry back on its feet – that’s why we’re taking steps to improve access, including paying dentists more to see patients who haven’t been in over two years, and incentivising dentists to work in underserved areas.
“Although NHS dentists are delivering more courses of treatment compared to last year, there is a lot more to do for our patients and we will be working with the government to reform the contract and deliver more appointments.”