MP calls for urgent reform of NHS dentistry

Helen Morgan has warned that NHS dentistry is facing a crisis, after new figures reveal that thousands of children and adults across the county are struggling to access basic care.

The data shows that a third of all children across the Shropshire, Telford & Wrekin NHS area haven’t seen a dentist in more than a year, while more than half of all adults haven’t had basic dental care in more than two years.  

Helen said NHS dentistry needed a “rescue plan” and called on the Government for urgent reform.

She said: “It is fundamentally wrong that it is so hard to access NHS dental treatment in Shropshire.

“People are being forced to spend hundreds or even thousands on private care, while others are resorting to DIY dentistry or turning up at A&E in desperation for pain relief.

“The Liberal Democrats are calling for an urgent rescue plan for NHS dentistry. Conservative mismanagement created this crisis, but after 18 months in power the Labour Government's recent attempt to tweak the system has not addressed the chronic underfunding and wider issues within NHS dental provision.”

The data released by the Liberal Democrats showed that four in ten children in England, or over five million, had not seen a dentist in the year up to June 2025, while 28million adults, around 60%, have gone without care for two years or more.

While the figures revealed a postcode lottery of dental care across England, in three quarters of areas at least 40% of children haven’t seen a dentist in two years.

The Liberal Democrats warned that the system is buckling and unable to cope and have put forward a £750m dental rescue plan, which would end so-called “dental deserts”, areas where no NHS dentists are available for new patients.

The plan would bring dentists back to the NHS from the private sector by reforming the dental contract, and would introduce an emergency scheme to guarantee access to free dental check-ups for children, new mothers, pregnant women and those on low incomes.

Helen added: “We want to see not only guaranteed access to an NHS dentist for anyone who needs emergency care, but also supervised toothbrushing in early years settings, and fixing the broken dental contract to bring dentists back into the NHS.

“Only with proper investment and reform, we can end dental deserts and make sure everyone can get the care they need.”

The Liberal Democrat analysis of official NHS data, broken down by local Integrated Care Board, can be found here.

The Royal College of Surgeons confirmed this year that tooth decay remains one of the leading causes of hospital admissions for young children. Read more here.