The Labour Party won the 2024 election on a prospectus to rebuild NHS dentistry for the long term, via reform of the discredited dental contract that continues to fuel the crisis in the service. Promises have been made for roll out within the current parliament, with a new model of care set to go to public consultation this summer. The BDA has expressed profound concern that this process could now be delayed.
The professional body warns any disruption could prove fatal for NHS dentistry. Typical practices are now delivering NHS care at a financial loss, with many reconsidering their futures in the service.1 Unmet need for NHS dental care is estimated at nearly 14 million, or over 1 in 4 of England's adult population.2
BDA Chair Eddie Crouch said:
“Wes Streeting sent a powerful signal by making us the first organisation he met after the election.
“Promises to fundamentally reform NHS dentistry have been made but are yet to be kept.
"Change at the top must not undermine progress to save a service millions depend on."
Notes to editors
- BDA analysis estimates a typical practice in England is losing over £25 on a checkup, almost £90 on denture repairs, and over £100 on root canal treatment. In England, the cost of delivering NHS treatments now exceeds the public funding provided by £1.2 billion. Analysis using treatment timings, an updated cost per clinical hour, and observed activity volumes, the total funding required to deliver NHS dental services in England is estimated at approximately £4.18 billion. This compares to an NHS primary care dental budget of £2.96 billion in 2023/24, implying a funding shortfall of around £1.22 billion.
- BDA analysis of the GP Survey, 2025, by Ipsos, extrapolating data in line with ONS midyear population estimates, places unmet need at close to 14m adults or over 1 in 4 of England’s adult population. Unmet need figures for 2025 were almost unchanged on 2024 levels, at around 13.8m. 5.7m adult patients tried and failed to secure NHS care in the last two years – a fall of 700,000 on the previous year’s figures, but with a corresponding surge in the number of people who had effectively given up trying, with the number of people not even attempting to make appointments as they didn’t think they could secure care up by over half a million to 5.9m. The costs of care pushed 1.3 million away, and 880,000 indicated they were on waiting lists, all up on the previous year’s figures. Prior to Covid, levels of unmet need hovered consistently at around 1 in 10 of the adult population.