NHS dentist shortage: Why routine appointments remain difficult to secure

Thousands of additional NHS dental appointments have been delivered across Greater Manchester; but patients are still facing difficulties finding a dentist for routine care.

Getting an NHS dentist appointment can be frustrating, with practices often unable to take on new NHS patients and some people reporting that they have had to consider private treatment.

The Government has attempted to improve access by funding thousands of additional urgent dental appointments.

Greater Manchester was initially allocated 17,897 additional urgent NHS dental appointments for 2025/26.

More recent figures from NHS Greater Manchester show that 31 dental practices signed up to provide additional urgent care, with 19,334 appointments delivered by January 2026.

However, these appointments were primarily aimed at people who need urgent dental treatment, rather than those simply looking for a routine check up or regular NHS dentist.

This means that while additional funding has helped provide more urgent care, patients looking for routine NHS treatment can still face difficulties finding a practice accepting new NHS patients.

NHS Greater Manchester confirmed that five dental practices withdrew from NHS provision across Greater Manchester over a 12 month period, including Green Lane Dental Practice in Leigh.

While the practice's withdrawal was a business decision and NHS Greater Manchester said it was not the result of an NHS funding cut, the loss of NHS provision can leave patients having to look elsewhere for care.

For patients, the distinction between urgent and routine care is important. Someone experiencing severe dental pain may be able to access urgent treatment, while someone trying to register with an NHS dentist for regular check ups can still struggle to find an available practice.

Even practices listed on the NHS website may not be accepting new NHS patients. NHS England advises people to contact practices directly to check whether they are currently taking on NHS patients.

If you need an NHS dentist, you can use the NHS Find a Dentist service to search for practices in your area and contact them directly to check availability.

If you have an urgent dental problem and do not have a dentist, or your dentist is closed, the Greater Manchester Urgent Dental Care Service can be contacted on 0333 332 3800, from 8am to 10pm every day, including weekends and bank holidays.

Despite efforts to increase NHS dental provision, routine access remains a concern for some patients.

Have you struggled to find an NHS dentist? We want to hear about your experience - [email protected]