The British Dental Association has lamented the pace of change for the merger of the Department of Health and Social Care and NHS England, saying huge delays will leave Dental Public Health (DPH) work stuck in limbo, undervalued and unclear on whether they have a future.
At a staff meeting this afternoon, the shape of change was outlined in broad terms. The BDA understand staff were told “this is not about merging two organisations but building something more efficient and adaptable that feels truly new and empowers colleagues while maximising value for money.”
Despite the merger being announced by the Prime Minister almost a year ago, there has been little material progress or clarity for staff effected. The BDA understand that over 4,100 applications for the NHSE voluntary redundancy scheme are now being reviewed.
The DHSC is now running to a timetable that may allow colleagues who survive the merger to take up new roles in April 2027, over two years on from the original announcement.
The BDA understands that from now to April 2026, the Department will be defining its new essential role, vision, accountabilities and how functions will work together, in what has been dubbed its 'target operating model'. From March to August 2026, the Department will build on this to develop a more detailed organisational design, including how the functions will operate. The Department will work with employees, trade unions and staff networks to test and refine the operating model.
From October to November 2026, there will be a formal consultation on the detailed design proposals for the new DHSC and any future downsizing. From January to March 2027, there will be individual consultation on the filling of posts. This will be a mapping process to determine how current substantive posts in both NHSE and DHSC would translate to posts in the new DHSC. The aim is for colleagues to move into their new roles from April 2027
The professional body say this approach will leave the DPH workforce critically undermanned. When it moved from Public Health England into NHSE and the Office for Health Improvement and Disparities in 2021 there were 28.8 Whole Time Equivalent consultants in England. As of March 2025, this number had decreased by over 25% to 21.4 WTE and has continued to fall given the recruitment freeze in place when staff move between jobs.
Deep oral health inequalities look set to widen, making this vital expertise a strategic necessity. The recent Adult Oral Health Survey revealed decay rates among adults have surged to levels not seen since the 1990s, with decades of oral health gains wiped out.
BDA Chair Eddie Crouch said:
“Colleagues left in the dark over the future of their roles are being told they will feel ‘empowered’. The reality is our members are being offered euphemisms rather than real clarity.
“A dental public health workforce was critically understaffed before talk of merger.
“We will stand up for a workforce left in limbo, for all the experts in their field unclear if they even have a future.