By Matthew Hill, Health Correspondent, BBC News
BBC
A father is calling on all parties to “sort out the dental crisis” and give more funding for NHS treatments after he and his family have been unable to see an NHS dentist since the start of the pandemic.
Andrew Sparkes, 39, from Locking, North Somerset, said he had tried and failed to find a dentist taking on NHS patients in his local area, even for his children.
Mr Sparkes is among the many people who got in touch with the BBC via Your Voice, Your Vote to tell us that NHS dental care is one of the most important issues for them in this election.
“For the four of us it would be £40 a month and that’s just for one appointment a year and that doesn’t include treatments or anything,” Mr Sparkes, who said he cannot afford to go private, added.
Mr Sparkes said he is full of worry that his children’s teeth are decaying and all children should be seen under the NHS, “regardless of whether the parents are registered” and “children need to be taught how to look after their teeth correctly”.
“There’s only so much parents can do,” he said.
Mr Sparkes said when he questioned a receptionist about the shortage, he was told there was a lack of staff in the area.
“I have been told by a receptionist that they can’t get the dentists in, there’s not enough being trained and they were treated so poorly during Covid that people have just let the profession,” he added.
Although the crisis in getting NHS dental care in North Somerset is bad, in Somerset it is even worse, with the area having the lowest rate of dental care being delivered in the whole of the South West of England.
In Somerset, 49% of dental contracts are being delivered.
In South West England as a whole, it is 69%.
Over the past six years, the number of children being seen by dentists in Somerset has also almost halved.
In 2017/18, more than 60% of children saw a dentist. According to the latest board minutes of Somerset Integrated Care Board it was 32% in 2023/24.
A NHS Somerset spokesperson said they recognise that residents of the county had “found accessing NHS dental appointments extremely challenging in recent years”.
“At our Board Meeting in May, as part of NHS Somerset’s ongoing commitment to make it easier for residents in Somerset to access NHS dental care, and support our NHS dental teams to ensure they have the necessary resources to deliver vital care, we agreed a £4.3m investment into providing NHS dental services,” they added.
Nicolette Smith, 71, from Bridgwater, also contacted the BBC about the problems of finding an NHS dentist.
Ms Smith said despite paying national insurance for 43 years, she is unable to access the treatment she needs.
She said: “My teeth are in a bad way due to accident. I have heart failure, COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease), type 2 diabetes and dementia and can’t get a dentist or follow ups.”
“I can’t even smile because I lost three teeth. What are the parties going to do to get our national health sorted?”
How will the different parties tackle issues with dental care?
The Conservatives say their dental plan has already resulted in 500 additional practices opening their doors to NHS patients , and created an extra 2.5 million NHS appointments this year.
Labour is promising an extra 100,000 urgent appointments for children in England. All funded through a clampdown on tax avoidance and UK residents with homes outside the UK.
The Liberal Democrats plan to introduce an emergency scheme guaranteeing free check-ups for children, young mothers, and those on low incomes.
The Green Party says it will put £50bn into health and social care, including giving everyone access to an NHS dentist by reforming the contract and taxing the rich more.
Reform says it will train thousands more dentists and incentivise them to get through the backlog.
