ICBs should continue working with practices to recruit dentists via the golden hello scheme in 2025/26, according to NHS England.
In a primary care bulletin sent on 20 March, it said this scheme would continue into the next financial year to encourage the recruitment of dentists to areas that have previously struggled with this, attract new workforce to the NHS and retain those who would otherwise have moved to private practice.
The scheme was introduced as part of the dental recovery plan which was published in February 2024. It offers bonus payments of up to £20,000 for around 240 dentists to work in under-served areas for up to three years.
However, despite 274 practices being approved for a golden hello post, the first dentist was only appointed in October, according to a National Audit Office (NAO) report last year.
The bulletin gave an example of one dental practice in Bedfordshire that had successfully recruited, with the incentive ‘particularly helpful’ for its rural practice.
‘As a result of the scheme their practice has become more attractive to dentists and they’ve successfully recruited, which has led to their NHS waiting list being halved,’ it said.
NHS England called on ICBs to continue making use of the scheme and working with practices to support ongoing recruitment to posts.
In February, ICBs were told to commission urgent dental appointments during the next financial year, funded from within dental allocations.
These urgent appointments are to fulfil the government’s manifesto pledge of 700,000 extra urgent and emergency dental appointments. They are to be targeted to the dental deserts, where patients typically struggle to access dental appointments.
The DHSC said ICBs would be required to purchase additional urgent care appointments over and above the level delivered in the 12 months up until June 2024. It said this baseline figure will be confirmed to each ICB once it is calculated.
