Overview
If you deliver NHS dental services in a general dental practice, participation in appraisal is a contractual requirement under Regulation 30 of the General Dental Services (GDS) contract. Appraisal is supported by a specific funded contribution and is intended to ensure that clinicians delivering NHS care are actively engaged in reflective professional practice. The wider aim is to promote safe, effective, and high-quality NHS patient care.
Appraisals relate only to NHS work and must be properly documented and capable of verification if requested by commissioners. When structured appropriately, appraisals support you in meeting your NHS contractual obligations, assist practices in evidencing staff competence and governance, and help maintain clear, professional working relationships within the practice setting.
Eligible associates and other self‑employed dental care professionals may self-declare completion of an annual appraisal, which triggers a fixed financial contribution. That contribution is converted into Units of Dental Activity (UDAs) at the practice’s nominal UDA value and credited to the NHS contract. Because this funding forms part of the overall NHS contract value, it is not paid separately but is dealt with through your agreed contractual and UDA arrangements with the practice. Under the model BDA Associate Contract, those credited UDAs are apportioned in line with the agreed allocation, ensuring that both the practice and the clinician are remunerated fairly for their respective roles in the appraisal process.
Eligibility to claim is linked to you as an individual clinician and your delivery of NHS care, rather than to a specific practice.
This guidance explains how the appraisal process operates, including the practical considerations where the contract holder does not personally undertake the appraisal. It is supported by a dedicated appraisal template designed specifically to reflect the commercial and contractual realities of a self‑employed associate’s working arrangements, helping ensure that discussions remain focused, proportionate and properly documented.