What you can expect from us, and what we ask of you

NHS appointments — around 4 hours a day

Our NHS funding allows our dentists to provide approximately 4 hours of NHS care, Monday to Friday.

• Full advance payment of the NHS Band 1 charge is required before your NHS assessment.
• Full payment of your NHS Band 2 or Band 3 charge is required at your assessment appointment, before further appointments can be booked.

NHS availability

We have funding for approximately 6,000 patients, but demand for NHS care far exceeds this.

• NHS care is prioritised for patients who pre-book.
• NHS care is withdrawn for patients who miss appointments or cancel with less than 48 hours’ notice.
• New patients who miss their first NHS appointment will not be offered any further NHS appointments.

NHS waiting times

While we are a private practice that offers some NHS treatments, we regret that we are currently unable to offer any additional NHS appointments, and we do not operate a waiting list. Our limited allocation is strictly reserved for existing patients already undergoing treatment, and those who already have scheduled NHS appointments.

Understanding NHS dental care

NHS dental care operates differently from NHS GP services — there is no permanent patient registration with an NHS dentist. Treatment is provided on a treatment-by-treatment basis, depending on availability and government funding. There is no such thing as an “NHS patient” or being “registered on the NHS” under the current contract.

At present, NHS dental funding only covers care for about 40–50% of England’s population.

Our policy towards future NHS care

• Pre-book your next routine check-up before leaving, and make a note of the date.
• Look out for your reminder — you will receive one reminder by email.
• If you do not attend a check-up within six months of its due date, your record may be archived.

• Implants, teeth whitening, orthodontics and other cosmetic treatments are only available privately.
• If you’d rather not wait for routine NHS care, private routine dental care is available. A check-up costs £54, including 2 X-rays.
• An advance payment is required to secure appointments.

Hygienist appointments

Regular visits to our hygienist help you maintain good oral health. Payment in full is required to secure appointments.

Please keep your appointments

Advance payment secures an appointment for private dental or hygienist care. It transfers if the appointment is rescheduled with at least 48 hours’ notice, but is non-refundable if appointments are missed or rescheduled with less notice.

We reserve emergency slots for patients with:

• Trauma
• Facial swelling
• Bleeding after treatment

Appointments for all other conditions depend on availability. If you have had a course of treatment in the past 2 months, you are entitled to NHS care.

A private emergency or urgent assessment appointment costs £54 and includes 2 small X-rays. The dentist will advise you of any additional treatment charges once your condition has been assessed.

Outside our working hours, please contact NHS 111.

Appointments cancelled with less than 48 hours’ notice, and missed appointments, deny other patients access to care. We therefore operate a fair notice policy so we can look after as many of our patients as possible.

If a first NHS appointment is missed or cancelled with less than 48 hours’ notice, we regret that we will not be able to offer another NHS appointment at this practice.

Even where more than 48 hours’ notice is given, it may not always be possible to rearrange NHS appointments, due to extremely high demand and limited availability.

Fees

William Place Dental Aesthetics does not offer credit, and we require payment balances to be settled in advance.

Finance

Finance is available for treatments over £1,000, and a minimum deposit may also be required. Finance agreements must be accepted and signed before treatment commences. See fees and finance.

NHS Band 2 and Band 3 treatment

Full payment is required at the time of booking treatment. We regret that we are no longer able to schedule appointments without advance payment.

Our team has the right to be treated with respect and politeness, and to work without fear of violent, abusive and/or intimidating behaviour.

Any guest not complying with this policy will immediately be refused any further care and be de-registered on our database. Further action may be taken if necessary.

Read our full Zero Tolerance Policy (PDF)

Complaints

We would much rather hear about a problem than have you leave unhappy. Please raise concerns with the practice in the first instance.

Read our complaints procedure (PDF)

Freedom of information

As an NHS provider we publish a Publication Scheme under the Freedom of Information Act.

Read our Publication Scheme (PDF)

Your data

We handle personal data in line with UK GDPR. See our privacy policy.

Regulation

Our clinicians are registered with the General Dental Council. The practice is registered with and inspected by the Care Quality Commission.