How to find an NHS dentist accepting new patients

The NHS Find a dentist service

The NHS website runs a search for dental practices in England at nhs.uk/service-search/find-a-dentist. You type a town, city or postcode, or allow the browser to share your location. The search returns NHS dentists accepting new patients for routine check-ups and those offering urgent or specialist dental care in the area. Each result gives opening times, contact details and facilities.

The search does not book anything. It tells you where to phone.

What "accepting new patients" means

A practice listed as accepting new patients is taking people for routine NHS check-ups. The listing is not an appointment. The NHS website says you may be asked to join a waiting list before you get one. Some practices offer NHS and private care side by side, so ask for NHS treatment by name when you call.

No lasting registration in England

The NHS says you can contact any NHS dentist and ask for an appointment if you have symptoms or need a routine check-up.

At your first visit the practice may ask you to fill in a form to register. The NHS website states this does not mean you will always be able to get NHS dental care at the same practice in future.

Northern Ireland works differently. Health Service dentists there register patients for continuing care, and a registered patient can ask for a free treatment plan showing each item and its price.

Steps to get an NHS appointment

1. Search Find a dentist with your postcode and note every practice shown as accepting new patients.
2. Phone each one. Ask for an NHS check-up, and ask whether the practice takes adults, children or both.
3. If a practice offers a waiting list, join it and write down the date. Ask how long the wait is likely to be.
4. Widen the search to the next town if nothing comes up. You can use any NHS practice, not only the nearest.
5. If no practice can take you, contact your local integrated care board. The NHS website says the ICB manages dental services in your area and may be able to help you find an appointment.
6. If you have additional or special care needs, a general practice should still see you. The dentist can refer you to Special Care Dentistry when specialist treatment is needed.
7. For pain, a knocked-out tooth or a broken filling while you wait, call NHS 111 or use 111 online. Urgent NHS treatment in England costs £27.90.

What you pay once a practice takes you

Most adults pay for NHS dental care in England. From 1 April 2026 a course costs £27.90 for band 1, £76.60 for band 2 and £332.10 for band 3, once per course whatever the number of visits. Under 18s, under 19s in full-time education, pregnant women and anyone who had a baby in the last 12 months pay nothing. So do people on Pension Credit Guarantee Credit, income-related Employment and Support Allowance or Universal Credit below the earnings limits, and HC2 holders. Bring proof to the first appointment. The free NHS dental treatment guide sets out the evidence each group needs.

The cost difference while you wait

Private care is open to anyone, at a price. Bupa Dental Care lists a new patient check-up at £98 in Newtownabbey, £99 at Partick West in Glasgow, £100 in Sale, £125 in Trowbridge and £139 in Islington. The NHS band 1 charge in England is £27.90 from 1 April 2026. A first check-up at Bupa Sale costs £72.10 more than the NHS charge, and at Bupa Islington £111.10 more.

The gap widens with treatment. At Bupa Sale a new patient check-up and two small white fillings start at £100 plus 2 x £240, which is £580. On the NHS in England the same course is band 2 at £76.60, a difference of £503.40.

Some mydentist practices give the examination free. Treatment after it is charged at mydentist's private prices, such as £77 for a hygiene appointment and from £174 for a white filling in England and Wales.

Dental schools treat some adults without a dentist free of charge, in long term-time appointments. The dental schools guide lists the schools and how to apply.

How to complain

Start with the practice. The Care Quality Commission says to contact the service provider in the first instance. For NHS-funded care you also have the right to complain to the organisation which paid for the care, and the NHS England website explains how. For NHS-funded care the CQC also points to the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman.

Private treatment complaints go to the Dental Complaints Service. The CQC does not take forward individual complaints, though it says information about poor care helps it protect others.

Mistakes that cost money

Accepting a private check-up when you asked for NHS. Confirm the type of appointment and the price before the visit.

Assuming a past registration still stands. The NHS says a registration form does not guarantee future NHS care at the same practice.

Paying private prices for a problem NHS 111 would arrange care for. An urgent NHS course costs £27.90 in England, against £74 to £170 for a Bupa emergency appointment.

Giving up after the nearest practice. The NHS lets you approach any NHS practice, so search wider before paying privately. The private dentist prices guide shows what the alternative costs.

Where the figures come from

The search options and results are from the NHS Find a dentist page. The advice to contact any NHS dentist, waiting lists, the registration form, the ICB, NHS and private care at one practice, and Special Care Dentistry are from the NHS website page on finding an NHS dentist. The 111 symptoms are from the NHS emergency dentist page. The complaint steps are from the Care Quality Commission. The band charges are from NHSBSA knowledge base article KA-02003, and the free groups from the NHS website page on free dental treatment. The Northern Ireland registration point is from nidirect. Private prices are from Bupa practice pages and mydentist's standard prices on 22 October 2026. The £74 to £170 Bupa emergency fees are on the same Bupa pages.