Catherine Rutland

Catherine Rutland is Head of Policy at Dentaid, representing the dental charity across the profession and engaging with MPs, public health teams and commissioners. She is also Director of Policy and Clinical Affairs at The Association of Dental Groups, whose members work with over 22,000 registered dental professionals in treating over 10 million dental patients. Previously Clinical Director at Simplyhealth, including Denplan, she is part of the General Dental Council’s Dental Leadership Network.

After qualifying as a dentist in 1992 from the University of Leeds, where she achieved a Distinction in oral surgery, she spent two and a half years in secondary care as a House Officer in Leeds and Senior House Officer in Newcastle before moving into general dental practice. She completed Vocational Training in Sunderland and spent a year there as an associate GDP before practising in Reading for three years. From 2000-2019, she was Principal Dental Surgeon and a joint partner at a private dental practice in Thatcham, West Berkshire. She joined Denplan as a Dental Advisor in 2010, and was later promoted to Senior Dental Advisor, Head of Professional Support Services and Head Dental Officer before working there full-time from 2019.

In 2013, she completed a Master’s degree in Medical Ethics and Law at King’s College London, writing her dissertation on whether both professional integrity and patient autonomy can be satisfied in fulfilling patients’ cosmetic dental desires. She became a Certified Member of the Institute of Risk Management in 2015 and was awarded a Chartered Management Institute Level 7 Certificate in Leadership Mentoring and Coaching in 2016. She became a Fellow of the College in 2023, and in 2024 was a keynote speaker at the CGDent Scotland Annual Study Day, the College’s largest annual CPD event, lecturing on ethical and legal considerations in the provision of aesthetic and cosmetic dental procedures.

A Trustee of the Dentists’ Health Support Trust, which supports dentists facing mental health and addiction challenges, she also brings governance experience as a past Chair of the Clinical Governance Committee at Simplyhealth and of the Denplan Excel Board.

She was appointed a Trustee of the College in 2026.

Updated 2026