One of the issues I hear about from residents is access to NHS dentistry. Whether it is parents who cannot find an NHS dentist for their children, people waiting far too long for treatment, or older residents worried about losing access to a trusted local practice, it is clear that our dental services are under real strain.
Good oral health is not a luxury. It is a fundamental part of our overall health and wellbeing. When people cannot access routine dental care, small problems become bigger ones. Pain, infection and avoidable hospital visits are bad enough, but poor oral health also affects people’s confidence, their ability to work and study, and their quality of life.
It is easy to point fingers, but that will not solve the problem. The dentists and dental teams serving our communities are working incredibly hard. They entered the profession to care for patients, not to battle an outdated system that too often makes it harder for them to provide NHS care.
The truth is that the NHS dental contract has been failing both patients and dentists for years. It does not reflect the realities of modern dentistry, it places unnecessary pressure on practices, and it leaves many feeling that continuing to provide NHS treatment is becoming increasingly difficult. If we want more NHS appointments, we need a system that supports the professionals delivering them.
That is why I believe we should be listening much more closely to those on the frontline. Our Local Dental Committee represents dentists who understand the challenges facing patients because they see them every day. Their expertise should be at the heart of decisions about the future of NHS dentistry. Policies designed without meaningful engagement with the profession are unlikely to deliver the improvements that patients deserve.
This is not only a local challenge. Helen Morgan, our Health and Social Care spokesperson, has been raising exactly these concerns in Parliament – pressing ministers on dental contract reform and warning that patients are being left without care because the current system does not work for dentists either. Here in Wimbledon, I want to be a local champion for that same change: pressing for practices to be properly funded, and for bodies such as our Local Dental Committee to have a genuine voice, rather than being an afterthought, when the future of NHS care is being planned
Wimbledon is fortunate to have skilled, dedicated dental professionals who care deeply about the communities they serve. They want to provide NHS care. They want children to receive regular check-ups, adults to access preventative treatment and vulnerable patients to receive the support they need. But goodwill alone cannot compensate for a funding model that no longer works.
Protecting NHS dentistry means protecting the people who provide it. That means ensuring practices are properly funded, reducing unnecessary bureaucracy and creating a contract that rewards prevention and good patient outcomes rather than simply measuring activity.
We also need to think beyond today’s immediate pressures. We must encourage the next generation of dentists to see the NHS as an attractive career, while making better use of the wider dental workforce, including therapists and hygienists, so patients can receive timely care in the right setting.
None of these changes will happen overnight, but they are essential if we are serious about rebuilding confidence in NHS dentistry. Above all, we need a spirit of partnership. Patients, dentists, NHS leaders, Government and organisations such as the South West London Local Dental Committee all want the same thing: accessible, high-quality dental care for local communities.
As Wimbledon grows, protecting our local health services has never been more important. NHS dentistry must be part of that conversation. We should value the professionals who keep our communities healthy, support local practices to continue providing NHS care, and work together to build a service that is sustainable for the long term.
Residents deserve to know they can access the care they need when they need it. Dentists deserve a system that enables them to do the job they trained for. If we can bring those two priorities together, we can begin to restore confidence in NHS dentistry—not just here in Wimbledon, but across the country.
