21st Report - Fixing NHS Dentistry

Select Committee
Public Accounts Committee HC 648 4 April 2025
Report Status Government responded
Conclusions & Recommendations 33 items (1 rec)
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Government Response (AI assessment · 33 of 33 classified)
Accepted 13
Accepted in Part 4
Acknowledged 2
Deferred 14
Government response
Treasury minutes: Government response to the Committee of Public Accounts on the Twenty-first report from Session 2024-25 · published 10 Jul 2025
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Recommendations & Conclusions

4 results
18 Conclusion Accepted in Part
Dental recovery plan ambition misaligned with targets, failing to ensure universal access
Conclusion
The initial announcement of the dental recovery plan claimed that its aim was to “significantly expand access so that everyone who needs to see a dentist will be able to”.51 However, that ambition was never aligned to the actual targets … Read more
Government Response Summary
The government commits to NHSE carrying out analysis of the New Patient Premium, Golden Hellos, and UDA uplift initiatives, with data collected by July 2025 and a detailed breakdown provided by Autumn 2025, which will help assess the plan's impact.
HM Treasury
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22 Conclusion Accepted in Part
Integrated Care Boards hold delegated responsibility and flexibilities for local dental service commissioning
Conclusion
Responsibility for commissioning dental services was delegated to integrated care boards (ICBs) in April 2023.62 Within the national dental contractual framework, ICBs have some flexibilities that NHSE says should help them to tailor services to meet specific population needs.63 This … Read more
Government Response Summary
The government acknowledges the importance of strengthening engagement with ICBs and reaffirms their crucial role in local decision-making and dental contract reform. NHSE is actively engaging ICBs on policy implementation and will further enhance this through engagement and wider consultation on 2026 Payment and Quality reforms.
HM Treasury
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24 Conclusion Accepted in Part
National mobile dental van initiative proved ineffective; no Integrated Care Boards invested
Conclusion
The idea of identifying ICBs to commission mobile dental vans seems a particular example of an ineffective interaction between a national policy and an appropriate measure on the ground. NHSE and DHSC identified twelve ICBs to deliver the initiative,69 but … Read more
Government Response Summary
The government acknowledges the need to strengthen relationships with ICBs and reaffirms the importance of local decision-making. NHSE has taken active steps to engage ICBs on policy implementation and upcoming reforms, including future engagement and a wider consultation for 2026 Payment and Quality reforms.
HM Treasury
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29 Conclusion Accepted in Part
NHS dental workforce declines, facing over 5,500 unfilled vacancies nationally
Conclusion
The NAO reported that in 2023–24 there were 24,193 dentists providing some NHS dental care in England, a 2% decline on the total since 2019–20.87 NHSE data outlines that there is a large workforce gap that exists in NHS dentistry, … Read more
Government Response Summary
The government states it is addressing immediate challenges by delivering 700,000 extra urgent dental appointments from April 2025 and implementing the Golden Hello scheme, which has recruited 45 dentists and has 250 posts advertised. It also mentions longer-term plans for contract reform, a 10 Year Health Plan (Summer 2025), and a refreshed long-term workforce plan to be published.
HM Treasury
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