Why is it so difficult to find an NHS dentist?

2022 research from the BBC

A BBC investigation in August 2022 found that 90% of NHS dental practices across the UK were not accepting new adult patients, and 80% were not taking on children. Most practices didn’t even have a waiting list, one practice in Norfolk had more than 1,700 people on its list, and another, in Cornwall, said it would take five years to be taken on as a patient.

A separate YouGov survey in March 2023 highlighted the desperate measures people were taking because of a lack of access to NHS dental care. One in ten people (10%) said they had tried to carry out their own dental work, half of them within the last two years. Of those who said what they had tried, around a third (34%) had pulled out, or tried to pull out, their own teeth, and 32% had given themselves fillings.

More recent NHS figures show how few adults are seeing an NHS dentist: in the two years to 31 March 2026, 18.8 million adults in England saw one, which is 40% of the adult population (NHS Business Services Authority, August 2026).

Who is entitled to free NHS dentistry?

In England, only certain groups can get free NHS dental treatment; this includes anyone who:

• Is under 18, or under 19 and in full-time education.
• Is pregnant or has had a baby (or a stillbirth) in the last 12 months.
• Gets certain benefits, or whose partner does (including income-related Employment and Support Allowance, Pension Credit Guarantee Credit, and Universal Credit if their income is below a certain amount).
• Has a valid HC2 certificate (you may also get some help with the cost if you have an HC3 certificate).
• Is having treatment in an NHS hospital from a hospital dentist (though you may still have to pay for dentures or bridges).

If you don’t fall into one of these groups, you’ll need to pay for NHS dental treatment, but the charges are fixed (see the bands below). Charges work differently in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland; in Scotland, for example, NHS check-ups are free for everyone.

Remember that NHS dental treatment only covers work considered ‘clinically necessary’. In other words, it must be treatment your dentist thinks you need for good oral health.

Why isn’t dental care free for everyone?

When the NHS launched in 1948, dental care was free alongside medical treatment. By 1951, charges were introduced for dentures as demand was so great and the NHS could not cover costs. Since then, charges for dental exams and other treatments have followed and have gradually risen.

In England, NHS dental treatment is split into three bands, each with a fixed charge (these are the charges from 1 April 2026):

• Band one covers dental exams, diagnosis and guidance. It also includes x-rays, a scale and polish if your dentist thinks it’s necessary. The current charge is £27.90.
• Band two includes fillings and root canal treatment alongside treatments such as extractions. The current charge is £76.60.
• Band three is the highest group and covers more extensive dental work such as dentures, crowns and bridges. The current charge is £332.10.

Finally, urgent dental treatment has its own charge of £27.90, the same as band one. It covers treatment you need quickly, such as an examination, x-rays, a temporary filling, refixing crowns or bridges and removing up to two teeth.

Why aren’t dentists taking on new NHS patients?

There are several reasons why so few dentists are taking on NHS patients. Fundamentally, it comes down to the cost of providing those services, government underfunding, and lack of qualified dentists.

Cost of providing NHS services

NHS dental care is a service provided by (mainly) private dental practices. It means that the NHS pays these practices to carry out treatment, and dentists are not employed by the NHS (unlike most hospital doctors and nurses).

The money dentists receive from the NHS is not enough to cover the service they provide. Because of this, many dentists have chosen not to provide NHS dental care.

Under the terms of the NHS contract, dentists are not paid for the number of procedures they perform. Instead, they need to earn what’s called ‘units of dental activity’ or UDA for short.

Each practice that carries out NHS work is given a yearly UDA target and is paid for it in monthly instalments. If it delivers less than 96% of its target, the NHS claws back money at the end of the year, and it is only paid for a limited amount of work above the target, so there’s little reason to see more NHS patients than the contract covers.

The problem is that UDAs correspond to treatment bands, not the treatment or procedure. So, for example, work that falls into band one will earn a dentist one UDA regardless of how much time they spend with the patient. Similarly, it doesn’t matter if a patient needs three or eight fillings; the dentist will earn the same number of UDAs.

For many dentists, the money they receive for the treatment they provide isn’t enough. It also doesn’t necessarily reward preventative treatment or reflect the skills and experience of dentists who continue to train and develop their expertise.

Also, the charge you pay for NHS treatment doesn’t add to what the practice earns, because practices collect it on behalf of the NHS and it counts towards what the NHS pays them.

During 2026, the government began changing the NHS dental contract in England, making urgent care a core part of what NHS practices must provide and paying for longer packages of treatment for people with complex problems such as severe tooth decay or gum disease. The UDA system itself is still in place.

Government underfunding

The National Audit Office found that from 2014-15 to 2018-19, funding for NHS dentistry in England fell by 4% in real terms, while the charges patients pay rose by 9% in real terms.

The British Dental Association (BDA) says the NHS in England only pays for enough dentistry to treat around half the population.

The increasing cost of providing dental services is making the underfunding issue worse. In July 2022, the BDA estimated that the cost of running a practice had risen by more than 11% in a year, with lab bills up by an average of 15%.

Many dentists have cut back on NHS work

In May 2022, the BDA estimated that around 3,000 dentists in England had stopped NHS work since March 2020. In its survey, nearly half (45%) of dentists said they had cut their NHS work since the pandemic began, and 75% said they were likely to cut it further in the next 12 months. The number of dentists doing some NHS work has since risen to 25,419 in 2025/26, more than before the pandemic, but anyone who did at least one unit of NHS work in the year is counted, so it doesn’t show how much NHS work each dentist does.

To put that into perspective, of the four European countries in the G7 (UK, Germany, Italy, and France), the UK had the fewest dentists per 10,000 people in 2018, at just 5.3. Germany had the most (8.5), followed by Italy (8.3) and France (6.5).

Within the UK, England had the fewest NHS dentists per 10,000 people in 2018-19, at just 4.4. Scotland had the most (6.2), then Northern Ireland (6.0), followed by Wales (4.8). England’s figure has barely changed since: in 2025/26 it had 4.3 NHS dentists per 10,000 people.

Which areas are the worst affected by a lack of NHS dentists?

Within England (the worst affected home nation), NHS Norfolk and Waveney had the fewest NHS dentists in 2025/26, at about 3.4 per 10,000 people.

Some areas were much more fortunate and had far more NHS dentists. Hertfordshire and West Essex, for example, had about 6.9 per 10,000 people, roughly twice as many as Norfolk and Waveney.

What are my options if I can’t find an NHS dentist?

You can search for local NHS dentists on the NHS website. Practices will tell you whether or not they’re taking on any new NHS patients. If they are, you may be put on a waiting list. Bear in mind that waiting lists can be long.

If there are no NHS dentists near you, you can contact dental practices outside your local area – unlike GPs, you’re not limited by location.

If you still can’t find a practice taking on NHS patients, contact your local integrated care board (ICB), which manages NHS dental services in your area and may be able to tell you where you can get an appointment. If you need urgent treatment, you don’t need to be registered with a dentist: contact a practice and ask for an urgent appointment, or use NHS 111 online or call 111.

There are also dental charities, such as Dentaid The Dental Charity, whose mobile dental units visit places like food banks, hostels, women’s refuges and community centres. Its volunteer dentists focus on relieving pain and treating infections, such as with fillings and extractions, rather than routine treatment.

Dentaid’s UK clinics are run with local charities and support organisations for the people they help, such as people experiencing homelessness or families living in poverty, so they aren’t a walk-in service for everyone. You can learn more about its work on the Dentaid website.

Alternatively, you may decide to join a practice as a private patient and pay for treatment yourself.

Is private dental treatment very expensive?

Private dental treatment usually costs much more than NHS treatment: our August 2026 private dental pricing research found that a new patient examination typically costs £80 and a crown £750, against £27.90 and £332.10 for the matching NHS bands in England. Each practice sets its own fees, so it’s always a good idea to compare fees in your local area, and most practices list their prices on their websites.

If you’re concerned about cost, many dental practices offer payment plans where you can spread the cost of basic exams and hygiene appointments across the year. You’ll need to pay for any additional treatment, but again, there are often plans that mean you can pay off what you owe in instalments.

You could also consider a dental insurance plan, which helps cover the cost of check-ups and some treatment in exchange for a monthly premium. You can choose between different levels of cover depending on what you need and your budget. Some health insurance policies also let you add dental cover, and you can get comparison quotes through myTribe from the UK’s leading insurers. Cover is for future treatment, so dental work you already need, or a course of treatment you’ve already started, usually isn’t covered at first.

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