In January 2022 the BBC Shared Data Unit reported around 1,000 NHS dentists left the health service in the past year - equivalent to more than 2,500 posts across England and Wales.
Unions warned NHS dentistry is "hanging by a thread" with some patients facing two-year waits for routine check ups.
The British Dental Association (BDA) said unhappiness with the NHS dental contract was a key factor.
The number of NHS dentists working in two English clinical commissioning group areas (CCGs) fell by more than a quarter in the year ending March 31, 2021, with the combined equivalent of 2,435 dentists leaving the health service.
The worst-affected was NHS Portsmouth CCG, which lost 26% of its NHS dentists over 12 months.
Meanwhile, 28 other English CCGs have lost at least 10% of their NHS dentists.
In Wales, 6% of NHS dental posts were lost, with 83 fewer dentists working across health boards than the year before.
The worst-affected area was the Swansea Bay University Health Board, which had 22% fewer NHS dentists compared to the year before.
NHS England said patients who needed care the most should be prioritised, and said it had set up 600 urgent dental centres across England.
Days after our stoiry was published, Westminster allocated £50million in dentistry funding. The British Dental Association credited our story for the government's response.
The data and background methodology released to partners are available here:
- Pamela Carr, from Carlisle, who has been living with pain for more than a year and hasn't been able to find an NHS dentist
- Matthew Drake, from Kent, who used all his savings to pay for private dental treatment having failed to find an NHS dentist
- Sharon Grey, from Suffolk, who used metal files and superglue on her own teeth after failing to find an NHS dentist
- Shawn Charlwood, the British Dental Association's General Dental Practice Committee chairman
- Chris McCann, Healthwatch's interim director
- Sarfraz Khan, clinical director of TSJ Smile who runs six dental practices in Barnsley
- Aberdeen Press and Journal: NHS dentists increase across Scotland despite ‘perilous situation’ faced by practices 20 January 2022
- Andover Advertiser: NHS dentists in Hampshire "hanging by a thread" *20 January 2022 *
- Basingstoke Gazette: NHS dentists in Basingstoke facing huge backlog of patients 20 January 2022
- Bolton News: A quarter of Bolton dentists quit the NHS 20 January 2022
- Bolton Journal: One in four dentists ‘have quit NHS work in Bolton' 20 January 2022
- Bury Free Press: West Suffolk CCG area sees one of the biggest drops in NHS dentists in England over last year 20 January 2022
- Chichester Observer: NHS dentistry 'hanging by a thread' as West Sussex dentist numbers continue to drop 20 January 2022
- Crawley Observer: NHS dentistry 'hanging by a thread' as West Sussex dentist numbers continue to drop 20 January 2022
- Hampshire Chronicle: NHS dentists in Hampshire "hanging by a thread" 20 January 2022
- ITV News Anglia: Lack of NHS dentists leaving patients in East Anglia 'pulling out their own teeth' 20 January 2022
- Lancashire Telegraph: Blackburn with Darwen loses 7 per cent of NHS dentists in one year 20 January 2022
- Liverpool World: Warning over NHS dentist numbers 20 January 2022
- Lynn News: Dozens of dentists quit NHS in Norfolk and Waveney as union warns service is 'hanging by a thread' 20 January 2022
- Manchester World: The Greater Manchester borough which lost one in four NHS dentists in a year 20 January 2022
- Midhurst and Petworth Observer: NHS dentistry 'hanging by a thread' as West Sussex dentist numbers continue to drop 20 January 2022
- Monmouthshire Free Press: NHS Wales bids to stop exodus of dentists 20 January 2022
- National World: Nearly 1,000 dentists quit NHS: find out how many left where you live 21 January 2022
- Northern Echo: British Dental Association warns of NHS crisis in oral care 20 January 2022
- Rochdale Online: NHS dentists decrease by 9% in Rochdale borough last year 20 January 2022
- Romsey Advertiser: NHS dentists in Hampshire "hanging by a thread" 20 January 2022
- Salisbury Journal: NHS Dentist crisis: Salisbury man resorts to supergluing dentures 20 January 2022
- Scarborough News: New NHS dentist set to open in Scarborough before summer as industry 'hanging by a thread' * *
- Shoreham Herald: 21 Janaury 2022
- South Wales Argus: NHS Wales bids to stop exodus of dentists 20 January 2022
- Suffolk Free Press: West Suffolk CCG area sees one of the biggest drops in NHS dentists in England over last year 20 January 2022
- West Sussex Gazette: NHS dentistry 'hanging by a thread' as West Sussex dentist numbers continue to drop 20 January 2022
- Worcester News: Staff shortage and recruitment woes put NHS dentistry in crisis 20 January 2022
- Worthing Advertiser: Seven West Sussex dental practices gave up their NHS contracts during pandemic 24 January 2022
- Yorkshire Post: Barnsley and Kirklees hardest hit as NHS dentistry 'hangs by a thread' 20 January 2022
- Yorkshire Evening Post: Leeds sees nine per cent drop in dentists as unions warn NHS dentistry is "hanging by a thread" 20 January 2022
- Dentistry.co.uk: Almost 1,000 dentists left the NHS last year 20 January 2022
- El Iberico: El servicio de odontología del Servicio de Salud Inglés (NHS, por sus siglas en inglés ) "pende de un hilo". 20 January 2022
- Wales: The National: NHS Wales bids to stop exodus of dentists January 2022
- Cwmbran Life: Eight per cent drop in number of NHS dentists in Gwent over last year 20 January 2022
The story featured on television on the BBC News Channel and it was also reported by BBC 6 Music, Breakfast, Newsbeat, Asian Network and Radio Wales.
Regional BBC TV programmes that covere the story included: Look East, Points West, East Midlands Today, BBC London, Spotlight, South Today, Look North and Midlands Today.
Local BBC radio stations covered the story in Suffolk, Oxford, Norfolk, Cumbria, Lincolnshire, Manchester, Cambridgeshire, Coventry and Warwickshire, Hereford and Worcester, Nottingham, Cornwall, York, Tees, Gloucester, Devon, Leeds, Jersey, Newcastle, Sheffield, Northampton, Lancashire, Berkshire and Bristol.
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