The government’s plan for change promises an ‘NHS fit for the future’ – we explore how the plan will impact dentistry in the UK.

What is the plan for change?

In December 2024, the government announced a ‘plan for change’, laying out its priorities for the rest of this political term and beyond. This was summarised with five key missions.

To measure progress on these aims, the government also identified specific milestones that it hopes to achieve, with one focusing on healthcare: ‘Ending hospital backlogs to meet the NHS standard of 92% of patients in England waiting no longer than 18 weeks for elective treatment.’

As the plan was released, the British Dental Association (BDA) criticised the government for its lack of focus on dentistry. Shawn Charlwood, then chair of the BDA General Dental Practice Committee, said: ‘Past promises on NHS dentistry are nowhere to be seen in this “plan for change”. This crisis requires an action plan and a clear timetable. Warm words won’t get millions the care they need.’

However, several measures have since been announced which either directly relate to dentistry and oral health, or will impact the dental profession.

Urgent appointments

In February 2025, the government and NHS announced they would be providing 700,000 new urgent dental appointments from April 2025.

The new appointments will be focused in ‘dental deserts’ or areas of high NHS dental need. For example, parts of the east of England like Norfolk and Waveney, where statistics show there are 31 NHS dentists per 100,000 people – significantly below the national average.

Each integrated care board (ICB) has been given a target of urgent appointments to roll out. This is based on estimated local levels of unmet need for urgent NHS care, calculated by considering how many people tried and failed to get an NHS dentist appointment in the area.

Patients can access these appointments by contacting their usual dental practice, or calling NHS 111 if they are without a regular dentist or need help out-of-hours.

The urgent appointments were one of the Labour Party’s key pledges for dentistry in its election manifesto.

‘Getting NHS dentistry back on its feet’

As he announced the rollout of the urgent appointments, care minister Stephen Kinnock said: ‘We promised we would end the misery faced by hundreds of thousands of people unable to get urgent dental care. Today we’re starting to deliver on that commitment. 

‘NHS dentistry has been left broken after years of neglect, with patients left in pain without appointments, or queueing around the block just to be seen.

‘Through our plan for change, this government will rebuild dentistry – focusing on prevention, retention of NHS dentists and reforming the NHS contract to make NHS work more appealing to dentists and increase capacity for more patients. This will take time, but today marks an important step towards getting NHS dentistry back on its feet.’

Chief dental officer for England Jason Wong added: ‘Dentists are working hard to help as many patients as possible but too many people experience difficulties in accessing NHS dental services.

‘It is vital that we do more to improve access – we are working with local systems to prioritise this, which includes providing 700,000 additional urgent dental appointments to help make it quicker and easier for those most in need to be seen and treated on the NHS and we are incentivising dentists to work in underserved areas so that all areas of the country can receive the care they need.’

How did the profession respond to the urgent appointment announcement?

‘It’s progress, but government could have fired the starting gun on commissioning urgent care last summer. Action here will translate into just two extra slots a month for each NHS dentist. Ministers must now confront the failed contract that’s left millions with no options.’

Shiv Pabary

Chair, BDA General Dental Practice Committee

‘Whilst the ADG recognises today’s pledges as some progress towards resolving the UK’s dentistry crisis, our association’s concern is that the government is leaning on dental practices to fund urgent and routine care through their businesses’ “mixed economy” structure. Without proper reform, realistic funding and a focus on the inadequate dental workforce (remember, there are currently over 3,000 vacant dentist positions that we are unable to fill) we cannot hope to see significant progress in getting dentistry in the UK back on its feet in the near future.’

Neil Carmichael

Executive chair, Association of Dental Groups (ADG)

‘We welcome the announcement today about an increase in numbers of urgent dental appointments as there is a dire need to address gaps in access to NHS dentistry. However, while this may address some of the funding needs which prevent people accessing NHS care, it doesn’t address some of the fundamental causes of why colleagues are stepping away from providing that care. The reasons for that include dental professionals being frustrated about being unable to meet patient need under the current system.’

John Makin

Head, Dental Defence Union (DDU)

Supervised toothbrushing

A supervised toothbrushing scheme was rolled out in April 2025 as part of the plan for change. The government is investing £11 million in local authorities to deliver the programme in early years settings such as primary schools and nurseries in the most deprived areas of the country.

The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) said this ‘proven, evidence-based health intervention’ would reach up to 600,000 children annually and provide families with support to maintain good oral hygiene practices at home.

The project is supported by Colgate-Palmolive, which will provide 23 million toothbrushes and toothpastes to be used in the scheme in five years.

The DHSC estimates that every £1 spent on supervised toothbrushing will save £3 in avoided treatment costs. This equates to a saving of £34 million for the NHS over the next five years.

Health minister Stephen Kinnock said: ‘It is shocking that a third of five-year-olds in the most deprived areas have experience of tooth decay – something we know can have a lifelong impact on their health.

‘It’s why we’re delivering supervised toothbrushing to young children and families who are most in need of support as part of our wider plans to revive the oral health of the nation.’

Backlash against supervised brushing

Similarly to the additional urgent dental appointments, supervised toothbrushing was first pledged by the Labour Party as part of its election manifesto. However the idea initially met with backlash from teachers who felt that delivering brushing schemes would be an improper use of their time.

Paul Whiteman is the general secretary of the National Association of Head Teachers. He said: ‘We have serious reservations about how such a policy could even work. It is not the role of teachers to be making sure children brush their teeth each day.

‘Schools already play a role in teaching children about the importance of looking after their teeth through the curriculum, but there has to be a limit in terms of what we can expect them to do.’

One Hertfordshire teacher added: ‘I think life skills are important, and teaching children about toothbrushing is a good thing. We teach them all of those types of life skills in assembly every week.

‘So we should educate them about toothbrushing, but it shouldn’t be our job to check that they clean their teeth every day. It takes away from learning time, and it’s something that parents should do – but we know that that doesn’t happen.’

Labour responded to the criticism by clarifying that supervised toothbrushing would take place outside of lesson time in fully-funded breakfast clubs.

The profession asks: will supervised toothbrushing be effective?

‘It’s rare to find something to smile about in dentistry these days. But supervised tooth brushing is tried and tested policy that will save children from pain and our NHS a fortune. The only concern is why it’s taken a century to get here. Ministers need to go further and faster.’

Eddie Crouch

British Dental Association (BDA) chair

‘Whilst our focus is across the life course, we strongly believe that by introducing this strategy, the government is contributing to reducing the inequalities not only in oral health but in general health, too. This is an opportune moment for dental nurses and dental health practitioners to be able to contribute to this vision as key members of the oral health and dental wellness work. This is a time to excel, not to take a back seat, a time to be valued for the expertise that we bring to the table.’

Fiona Ellwood

Society of British Dental Nurses (SBDN) president

‘Children’s oral health is everyone’s business, so we are delighted to see industry partners stepping up and taking on the role they can play in reducing oral health inequalities. We are excited to see this commitment to improving children’s oral health, but there is a lot of work to do, and BSPD is rolling up its sleeves to play its part. This is the decisive action we have been pushing for.’

Urshla Devalia

British Society of Paediatric Dentistry (BSPD) media spokesperson

‘As both a dental nurse and oral health educator, I am excited to support this vital initiative to introduce supervised toothbrushing in early years settings. Tooth decay is one of the most preventable health issues affecting children today, and this programme provides a proactive solution to address it. Through strong collaboration between dental professionals, educators, parents and local authorities, we can develop clear solutions, provide the necessary training, and create a united front to overcome these barriers.’

Preetee Hylton

British Association of Dental Nurses (BADN) president

Water fluoridation

Alongside the supervised toothbrushing announcement, the government confirmed that it would be expanding water fluoridation across the north east of England. It is estimated that the expanded programme will reach 1.6 million more people and significantly reduce tooth decay.

BDA chair Eddie Crouch said: ‘Water fluoridation has been around since the second world war. Supervised brushing since Victorian times. Tried and tested policies, but it shows we need real pace here. Building an NHS dental service fit for the future won’t wait till the 22nd century.’

British Fluoridation Society secretary and treasurer Ray Lowry told Dentistry.co.uk: ‘There’s a misconception that somehow, in the day and age, fluoridated water is passe, irrelevant, ineffective and not worth bothering with. This view has been talked up as time has gone by and has even become fashionable in some academic circles.

‘But this view often baffles clinicians who see the benefits of water fluoridation in their daily practice. For example, in the north east of England, colleagues who care for patients in both fluoridated and non-fluoridated areas can see the difference to this day, and with the naked eye it is so obvious. And cessation studies have demonstrated what happens now when the intervention is curtailed.

‘No, as part of an overall strategy, water fluoridation has an important part to play today and in the future.’

Prescription charges

In May 2025, the government announced that it would be freezing prescription charges for the first time in three years.

The charge will remain at £9.90, with those who are already exempt from paying their prescription remaining so. Three-month and annual prescription prepayment certificates will also be frozen for 2025/26. Annual charges can be made in instalments – those requiring regular medicines will pay roughly £2 per week.  

The DHSC estimates that this will save patients an estimated £18 million within a year. It said this ‘puts money back into the pockets of working people’ in an effort to provide the security for working people promised by the plan for change.

Health secretary Wes Streeting said: ‘This government’s plan for change will always put working people first, and our moves today to freeze prescription charges will put money back into the pockets of millions of patients.

‘Fixing our NHS will be a long road – but by working closer with our pharmacies we’re saving money and shifting care to the community where it’s closer to your home.

‘We made the difficult but necessary choices at the budget to fund moves like this and change our NHS so it can once again be there for you when you need it.’

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