College of General Dentistry News

Nominations open for Council elections

Nominations are now open for elections to two seats on the College Council, and eligible individuals are invited to nominate themselves as candidates.

College Council members meeting in Sheffield, 13 June 2025

The Council is the voice of our members.  Overseeing our role as a professional body and guiding Trustees on the development of the College to fulfil its mission, it includes representation based both on geographical region and professional role.

Seats to be elected this year

Nominations are sought for the following seats in 2026:

  • Mersey & North West
  • Northern Ireland

Further seats on the Council will be due for election in 2027 and 2028 – see the College Council page for details.

Eligibility to stand

All Full Members, Associate Fellows and Fellows of the College, regardless of dental team role, who live or work within one of the above regions, and who are registered with that region with CGDent, are eligible to nominate themselves as candidates for election to the relevant Council seat.

Members who live and work in more than one region are welcome to change the address with which they are registered with the College in order to stand (or vote). This can be done at any time through their online account: log in at cgdent.uk then navigate via My Account to Update my details. (Please note that the new address will then be used for all correspondence, including receiving copies of the Primary Dental Journal.)

Associate Members within these regions who wish to nominate themselves for election will need to have successfully completed an upgrade to Full Membership before doing so. Any non-members will first need to join the College as a Full Member, Associate Fellow or Fellow. It is advised to allow at least a week for this to be processed.

The role

As a Council member, you would provide leadership, strategic input and direction in all the professional affairs of the College. You would be helping to shape key moments in the College’s growth and could also get involved in specific initiatives on areas such as careers, policy and standards.

If elected, you would serve a three-year term from June 2026 – June 2029, during which you would be expected to attend three one-day, face-to-face meetings in June, October and February each year, as well as regular online meetings and occasional committees outside of business hours.

You would also be expected to vote, and eligible to stand, in the annual election of up to two Vice Presidents; eligible to participate in the triennial appointment of a College President in 2027; and expected to attend College events around the UK.

You would be able to stand for re-election in 2029, and individuals may serve up to three elected terms (i.e. nine years) on the Council. The role is voluntary, but we do cover essential expenses. 

Elected candidates are expected to attend their first Council meeting on Friday 12 June 2026, when they will be formally inducted.

ROLE DESCRIPTION

College electoral regions

If you are unsure which College region you are in, check your entry on the Member Register

Nominations process

All existing members who are eligible to stand for either seat based on their current membership grade and College region (as of 15 January 2026) will be sent an email from the College’s election services provider, Mi-Voice, containing a link to the nominations website.

If you are interested in standing for election, you will need to complete the nomination process via that link, where you will be asked for further information, and to submit an election statement.

You will also be required to provide the names of two supporters of your nomination. Your supporters must each be a Full Member, Associate Fellow or Fellow of the College within the constituency you are standing for. If you are unsure of the membership status or region of potential supporters, please consult our Member Register

If you think you might like to put yourself forward as a candidate and would like further information before deciding, we would be pleased to have a confidential discussion and answer any questions about the role and the process – please get in touch via [email protected]

**The deadline for receipt of nominations is Tuesday 17 February 2026**

If a ballot is required, voting will open on Monday 23 March 2026 and close at 23:59 on Monday 27 April 2026, with the results announced in May.

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College of General Dentistry Event

Presentations of Associate Fellows and Fellows

Thursday 28 January 2027, 6-9pm, London

Professor Sreenivas Koka FCGDent being ceremonially admitted into Fellowship by College President Dr Roshni Karia

The Livery Hall, Cutlers’ Hall, Warwick Lane, London EC4M 7BR

Fellows and Associate Fellows who have not previously been formally presented are invited to be ceremonially admitted into our Fellowship community by the President of the College, Dr Roshni Karia.

The presentations will be incorporated within the Fellows’ Winter Reception, and will take place in front of gathered Fellows and Associate Fellows of the College.

This is only the second opportunity for those in six new Fellowship categories to be presented, and any Fellows in Dental Nursing, Orthodontic Therapy, Dental Hygiene, Dental Therapy, Dental Technology or Clinical Dental Technology attending the 2027 Fellows’ Winter Reception who were not presented at the 2026 Fellows’ Summer Reception will be ceremonially admitted.

It is also just the fourth opportunity for Associate Fellows to be presented, and all Associate Fellows attending the Fellows’ Winter Reception who have not previously been presented will be ceremonially admitted.

New Fellows, and any College Fellow attending the Fellows’ Winter Reception who has neither been ceremonially admitted at a previous College Fellows’ Reception nor had their fellowship of the former FGDP(UK) conferred at a Diplomates’ Day will be ceremonially admitted.

Photographs of each presenting Fellow and Associate Fellow being ceremonially admitted by the President will be made available shortly afterwards to download free of charge.

The Fellows’ Winter Reception is an opportunity for dental professionals to network with their peers, as well as to meet College Trustees and members of the College Council and Faculty Boards.

Taking place from 6pm to 9pm, with registration open from 5.30pm, it will be the final element of the ‘Winter Day’ programme of events which also includes:

Formal business attire is recommended.

Ticketing

Ticket prices and a registration link will be posted here in due course.

Non-members or existing members applying for Associate Fellowship or Fellowship and who wish to be ceremonially admitted at the Winter Reception are advised to submit their applications as soon as possible in order to allow enough time for admissions procedures to be completed.

Information on eligibility for Associate Fellowship and Fellowship and is available here

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College of General Dentistry Event

Presentation of the 2026 College Medal

Thursday 28 January 2027, 6-9pm, London

Dr Patricia Thomson FCGDent (l), winner of the 2026 College Medal (r)

The Livery Hall, Cutlers’ Hall, Warwick Lane, London EC4M 7BR

The 2026 College Medal, the College’s most prestigious honour, will be awarded to Dr Patricia Thomson FCGDent.

Reserved for no more than one recipient per year, the College Medal is awarded for exceptional service to the dental profession and its patients in a manner aligned with the values and mission of the College. Dr Thomson will receive the award in recognition of her wholehearted commitment to the profession, and her longstanding service to CGDent and previously to the Faculty of General Dental Practice (FGDP), both nationally and in the west of Scotland.

Since graduating from Glasgow Dental School in 1983 until her retirement from practice this year, Dr Thomson amassed 43 years’ unbroken service as a general dental practitioner. Principal of a mixed NHS-and-private practice for over 30 years, she assisted the Vocational Dental Practitioners in her practice for over 20 of these, also nurturing the careers of many Dental Care Professionals, associate dentists and non-clinical staff. In recent years, she practised as a part-time associate dentist, and she continues to teach undergraduates as a part-time Clinical Teaching Fellow in the restorative department at the University of Glasgow.

Heavily involved for more than two decades in the highly active West of Scotland division of the former FGDP, she tutored numerous colleagues for entry exams for the Royal Colleges and presented teaching sessions on orthodontics to vocational trainees. Elected in 2016 to represent the West and North of Scotland on the national FGDP Board, she was re-elected in 2019 and transferred to the College Council when CGDent succeeded the FGDP.

In 2021, she led the establishment of CGDent Scotland to succeed the West of Scotland division, and has since continued her involvement both in the study groups and in planning the annual study days, which have been running since 1992 and now regularly attract over 400 colleagues.

She was appointed the first Chair of the College’s Regional Funding Panel and was elected Vice-President of the College in 2022. She served a second term as Vice-President in 2023-24, and was re-elected to the Council in 2024 before standing down in 2025 after completing the maximum permitted nine years’ service. She continues to represent the College as its nominee on the NHS Education for Scotland Dental Committee, a role she has held for many years.

With a longstanding interest in orthodontics, she spent three years on a part-time clinical attachment in Glasgow Dental School’s orthodontic department, training in fixed appliance therapy, and later completed an MSc in Primary Dental Care (Dental Science) with an interest in orthodontics, achieving a distinction.

She also holds the Diploma of Membership of the Joint Dental Faculties of the Royal College of Surgeons of England (MJDF) and the Diploma of Membership of the Faculty of Dental Surgery of the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Glasgow (MFDS), and is a Fellow of the International College of Dentists and a Past President of the West of Scotland branch of the British Dental Association.

Dr Thomson will be the fifth recipient of the College Medal, following Ian Mills, Andrew Hadden, Ario Santini and Kevin Lewis.

The presentation of the College Medal, to be made by the President of the College, Dr Roshni Karia, will be incorporated within the 2027 Fellows’ Winter Reception*, and will take place in front of gathered Fellows and Associate Fellows of the College.

The Fellows’ Winter Reception is an opportunity for dental professionals to network with their peers, as well as to meet College Trustees and members of the College Council and Faculty Boards. The event will be open to all members of the College’s Fellowship community (Associate Fellows, Fellows and College Fellows).

*The presentation of the 2026 College Medal was originally scheduled to take place during the 2026 Fellows’ Summer Reception, however that event was cancelled due to the UK Health Security Agency’s red heat-health alert.

Formal business attire is recommended.

Ticket prices and a registration link will be posted here in due course.

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College of General Dentistry Event

Fellows’ Winter Reception

Thursday 28 January 2027, 6-9pm, London

The Livery Hall, Cutlers’ Hall, Warwick Lane, London EC4M 7BR

The fifth annual College of General Dentistry Fellows’ Winter Reception will take place on the evening of Thursday 28 January 2027 in the historic Cutlers’ Hall in London.

The event is an opportunity to network with peers over drinks and canapés, as well as to meet College Trustees and members of the College Council and Faculty Boards.

A welcome by the Chair of the College and an address by the President will be followed by the admission of new Fellows and Associate Fellows.

Taking place from 6pm to 9pm, with registration open from 5.30pm, it will be the final element of the Winter Day programme of events (further details to follow).

Formal business attire is recommended

Ticketing

The event is open to all members of the College’s Fellowship community (Associate Fellows and Fellows), as well as members of the College’s Board of Trustees, Council and Faculty Boards.

Information on eligibility for Associate Fellowship and Fellowship is available here

Ticket prices and a registration link will be posted here in due course.

The following event(s) will also be taking place in and around the same location on the same day:

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College of General Dentistry News

Certified Practitioner status in Endodontics / Implant Dentistry / Oral Surgery – register your interest now

The College is now accepting registrations of interest for the first three of its Certified Practitioner schemes.

Dentists interested in the Certified Practitioner in Endodontics, Certified Practitioner in Oral Surgery and/or Certified Practitioner in Implant Dentistry schemes can now register their interest online, and will be emailed once detailed eligibility criteria and application requirements for the relevant scheme have been finalised and applications opened.

The Certified Practitioner programme will enable general dental professionals to have their enhanced skills, knowledge and experience in particular fields of practice recognised. Created in close consultation with stakeholders, including NHS authorities, it will provide authoritative validation of enhanced capability for patients, colleagues and commissioners.

Intended to support recognition across both NHS and private practice, Certified Practitioner statuses will be open to both UK-based dental professionals and those practising elsewhere, and a range of schemes will be developed covering roles across the oral healthcare team.

The Certified Practitioner schemes for dentists are benchmarked against Level 2 case complexity and will align with the capabilities achieved following successful completion of a skills-based, university-awarded postgraduate diploma. The College is working with partners across the professional community to determine appropriate requirements for training and clinical cases, and these will be published discipline-by-discipline in due course.

The first scheme to open will be Certified Practitioner in Endodontics – CertPract(Endo) – the requirements for which now been developed in consultation with the British Endodontic Society. This will be followed by criteria for Oral Surgery – CertPract(OralSurg) – and Implant Dentistry – CertPract(ImpDent) – with further disciplines expected thereafter.

It is anticipated that applicants will be required to have at least five years’ post-registration experience, of which at least two years should be providing general dental treatment. They will need to present a CV, training log and logbook of cases which meet the required standard. They will also need to submit a detailed portfolio of some of these cases, which will form the basis of a peer-reviewed assessment.

Successful applicants will be entitled to use the ‘CertPract’ post-nominal for the relevant discipline. Their Certified Practitioner status will also be published on a Register of Certified Practitioners, and the designation will feature in the College’s Register of Members & Fellows.

Certified Practitioner dentists will be eligible for Associate Fellowship of the College, and deemed to have fulfilled the requirements of the Clinical & Technical domain of College Fellowship. College members will receive a fee discount.

To register your interest in the Certified Practitioner in Endodontics, Certified Practitioner in Oral Surgery and/or Certified Practitioner in Implant Dentistry schemes, click the button below:

REGISTER YOUR INTEREST HERE

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College of General Dentistry News

Recognition of Indian postgraduate qualifications

The College has published an updated policy on its acceptance of Indian postgraduate dental qualifications when determining eligibility for its highest grades of membership.

Dentists who have been awarded the Master of Dental Surgery (MDS) or a PhD by a higher education institution recognised by the Dental Council of India (DCI) are now eligible by default for Associate Fellowship of the College. The MDS is also recognised as fulfilling the requirements of the Clinical & Technical domain of College Fellowship, and a PhD as fulfilling the requirements of the Publications & Research domain.

The MDS is a three-year, full-time postgraduate degree which combines a wide-ranging post-BDS curriculum with additional study and research in a chosen specialist area. It is the accepted qualification for specialist practice in India, and candidates are selected via a competitive, nationally-set entrance examination.

Equivalence for other India-awarded qualifications will continue to be determined on a case-by-case basis, with applicants required to provide a Statement of Comparability from the UK National Information Centre for the recognition and evaluation of international qualifications and skills (UK ENIC, formerly UK NARIC). This can be obtained for a small fee.

A searchable register of recognised institutions in India is available on the homepage of the DCI website. Applicants are advised to search the full list for their institution rather than filtering for MDS courses; if the institution’s name cannot be found, they should provide a letter from the DCI stating its recognition of their institution and MDS speciality branch.

College membership marks a dental practitioner’s commitment to professional development and career progression. While the College welcomes all qualified and licensed dental professionals around the world into Associate Membership, postgraduate qualifications are required to enter into Full Membership and are the primary route to admission into Associate Fellowship and for satisfying the Clinical & Technical and Research & Publications domains of College Fellowship.

The College already recognises relevant Postgraduate Certificates, Postgraduate Diplomas, Master’s-level qualifications and PhDs awarded by recognised higher education institutions or regulated awarding bodies in the UK and the European Higher Education Area (EHEA). Those awarded elsewhere, with the exception of an MDS or PhD from an institution recognised by the DCI, should be accompanied by a Statement of Comparability as above.

In all cases, Postgraduate Certificates, Postgraduate Diplomas and Master’s-level qualifications must provide, respectively, 60, 120 or 180 UK academic credits or their equivalent (60 UK credits is the equivalent to 30 ECTS or 15 US credits) at Level 7 (as defined by the relevant qualification frameworks in England, Wales and Northern Ireland) or equivalent (e.g. Level 11 in Scotland).

The College also accepts a number of awards conferred by Royal Colleges and equivalent bodies in the UK and beyond.

Full details of eligibility for each type of membership are available here.

Members who practise wholly overseas and are not registered with the UK’s General Dental Council pay a concessionary membership fee which is one third of the standard rate.

Overseas members receive the same benefits as UK-practising members, including use of College postnominals and copies of the Primary Dental Journal by post.

Overseas-based Associate Fellows and Fellows are also eligible to attend the College’s biannual Fellows’ Receptions, which are usually held in London; those attending for the first time will also be ceremonially presented.

To apply to join the College, click the button below:

JOIN US

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College of General Dentistry News

Certified Practitioner scheme to recognise enhanced skills

The College has announced a new initiative enabling general dental professionals to have their enhanced skills, knowledge and experience in particular fields of practice recognised.

Created in close consultation with stakeholders, including NHS authorities, Certified Practitioner status will provide authoritative validation of enhanced capability for patients, colleagues and commissioners. Intended to support recognition across both NHS and private practice, they will be developed for all roles in the oral healthcare team and open to both UK-based dental professionals and those practising elsewhere.

Initially, a number of Certified Practitioner schemes will be opened to dentists. Benchmarked against Level 2 case complexity, they will also align with the capabilities achieved following successful completion of a skills-based, university-awarded postgraduate diploma. The College is working with partners across the professional community to determine appropriate requirements for training and clinical cases, and these will be published discipline-by-discipline in due course.

Applicants will be required to have at least five years’ post-registration experience, of which at least two years should be providing general dental treatment. They will need to present a CV, training log and logbook of cases which meet the required standard. They will also need to submit a detailed portfolio of some of these cases, which will form the basis of a peer-reviewed assessment.

Successful applicants will be entitled to use the ‘CertPract’ post-nominal for the relevant discipline. Their Certified Practitioner status will also be published on a Register of Certified Practitioners, and the designation will feature in the College’s Register of Members & Fellows.

Certified Practitioner dentists will be eligible for Associate Fellowship of the College, and deemed to have fulfilled the requirements of the Clinical & Technical domain of College Fellowship. College members will receive a discount on the credentialing fee.

Requirements for the first Certified Practitioner scheme, Certified Practitioner in Endodontics – CertPract(Endo) – have now been developed in close consultation with the British Endodontic Society, and will be published when applications open shortly. This will be followed by criteria for Oral Surgery and Implant Dentistry, with further disciplines expected thereafter.

Dr Roshni Karia MCGDent, President of the College, said:

“Getting a qualification is no longer enough to show your capability at a more advanced level, yet the dental profession has lacked a clear designation for those who have invested in high levels of skill development, beyond qualifications, for primary care practice. Our new Certified Practitioner scheme is the answer, enabling practitioners with an enhanced level of skill to demonstrate independent certification of their professional capabilities.”

Further details will be added to the Certified Practitioner page as they are announced.

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College of General Dentistry News

Coat of Arms Appeal – update

College Trustees have received an update on the fundraising appeal to support the full adoption of the College’s Coat of Arms, Badge and new colours following its recent Grant of Arms.

(l-r): The College’s recently-granted Coat of Arms; Sir Nairn Wilson CBE FCGDent receiving the Grant of Arms at the College of Arms; the College Badge

Since the appeal was launched in late July, £19,550 of the £28,000 sought has been generously donated by eight individuals, seven of whom are new donors to the fund:

  • Dr Irfan Ahmad FCGDent
  • Prof Subir Banerji FCGDent
  • Dr Keith Hayes FCGDent
  • Dr George Margaritis FCGDent
  • Dr Ralph Pickup FCGDent
  • Dr Peter Willy FCGDent
  • Dr Margaret Wilson
  • Prof Sir Nairn Wilson CBE FCGDent

These donations are in addition to the £22,500 given to the Coat of Arms Fund in the initial phase of fundraising – before an open appeal was launched – which covered the costs of the processes which culminated in the Grant of Arms. These funds were generously given by:

  • Dr Ali Al Bayati FCGDent
  • Col John Anderson FCGDent
  • Dr Tariq Ashraf FCGDent
  • Dr Christine Breare FCGDent
  • Dr John Gamon CBE FCGDent
  • Prof Stanley Gelbier FCGDent
  • Dr Edgar Gordon FCGDent
  • Dr Andrew Hadden FCGDent
  • Dr Robert Hensher FCGDent
  • Dr Stuart Johnston FCGDent
  • Dr Anthony Kravitz OBE FCGDent
  • Dr Graham Orr FCGDent
  • Dr Abhijit Pal FCGDent
  • Mr William Sharpling FCGDent
  • Smile Academy
  • Dr Christopher Turner FCGDent
  • Prof Sir Nairn Wilson CBE FCGDent

In all, £42,050 of the £50,500 total costs associated with receiving and making best use of the College’s Grant of Arms have now been donated by 25 individuals and organisations.

Donations to the Coat of Arms Appeal are being used specifically to realise the privileges of being granted Arms to best possible effect in order to further enhance recognition of the College, the status of Members and the standing of the general dental profession in the UK and elsewhere. 

Funds donated to the Appeal have so far been drawn upon to create a new College logo and related branding, incorporating the Coat of Arms and its colours, which have now been applied to the Primary Dental Journal; to the new edition of Standards in Dentistry; to the College’s website, member communications, newsletter and social media channels; and to new banners and displays which are now being used at College events and dental shows.

An application has also been lodged with the Court of the Lord Lyon in Edinburgh for the recognition of the College’s Coat of Arms in Scotland, and appeal funds have been set aside for the anticipated matriculation fees. The Letters Patent by which the College has been granted Arms provide official recognition in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, but as a UK-wide organisation, parallel recognition in Scotland is a priority for the College and will be important in the future application for Royal Charter.

Funds received to date are also being used to re-design and re-issue the digital membership certificates available to all College Members through their online accounts; to incorporate the new branding in all of the College’s standards and guideline publications; and to design, produce and distribute new College lapel pins to all Members featuring the College Badge – an opinicus rampant holding a giant pearl of wisdom (see right hand image above) – granted by the College of Arms.

In addition, Mick Horton FCGDent, Chair of CGDent’s Trustee Board, has agreed to fund the design and production of a run of College Medals – the College’s most prestigious honour, awarded annually for exceptional service to the profession; and Sir Nairn Wilson CBE FCGDent, the Honorary Founding President of the College and Chair of College Fundraising, is covering the cost of designing and producing a number of Past Presidents’ medals.

The design and production of a special medal to be worn by the sitting President, which in recognition of the College’s history will be hung on the Chain of Office previously worn by Deans of the former Faculty of General Dental Practice (UK) [FGDP], has also been covered by donations received to date, as has a gown for use by the President on ceremonial occasions such as during the admission of new Associate Fellows and Fellows of the College.

The Trustees would now like to encourage all Members and Fellows, supporters and supporting organisations of the College to give generously towards the remaining £8,450 required to fully realise the benefits of the Grant.

New donations will be used among other things to have the College’s Grant of Arms by Letters Patent professionally mounted for permanent display; to purchase an embossed, leather-bound Fellows’ Register; to produce gowns for use by the College’s Chief Executive and two Vice Presidents on ceremonial occasions; and to re-design, print and distribute new physical Membership and Fellowship certificates.

All donors, existing and new, will be acknowledged in the Primary Dental Journal and in perpetuity on the College website, with their cumulative donations, including to the Coat of Arms Fund, categorised as follows:

  • Major benefactors (>£50,000)
  • Benefactors (>£25,000)
  • Major donors (>£10,000)
  • Donors (>£5,000)
  • Major contributors (>£1,000)
  • Contributors (<£1,000)

Over 125 individuals and organisations from across the UK and beyond have so far donated to support the establishment and development of the College. These are listed on the College website’s donors page.

Sir Nairn said:

“Subscription income is fully employed in providing for the College’s core expenditure, making fund raising necessary to help the College realise its greater ambitions for the general dental profession.

“Donating to the Coat of Arms Fund is a special opportunity to go down in history as having helped the College reach a historic milestone in its development. This is a one-off opportunity to contribute to a lasting legacy which recognises the origins of dentistry as we know it today, and signifies the purpose, aims and aspirations of the College.”

All those wishing to secure a special place in the history of the development of the College should contact Sir Nairn, who will be pleased to assist you in becoming a Coat of Arms donor, and, if you are so minded, a College legator or regular donor. Please email [email protected]

CONTACT SIR NAIRN

Sir Nairn’s description of the symbolism and meaning behind each of the heraldic elements in the College’s Coat of Arms is here

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College of General Dentistry News

Foundation Nakao – CGDent Award winners 2025

The College and Foundation Nakao would like to congratulate the successful candidates in this year’s Foundation Nakao – CGDent Award in Coaching and Mentoring for Dental Care Professionals.

The winning entrants comprise five Dental Therapists, four Dental Nurses, two Clinical Dental Technicians, one Dental Hygienist and one Orthodontic Therapist from across the UK and elsewhere.

Candidate nameRoleMembershipRegion
Zahra AkhtarDental TherapistAssociate MemberYorkshire and Northern
Humair AlamClinical Dental TechnicianAssociate MemberNorth Thames
Dena AndrewsDental TherapistAssociate Member Trent & East Anglia
Kenneth Binnah AssocFCGDentDental NurseAssociate Fellow Central London
Steven William CatterallDental Nurse Associate Member Mersey & North West
Poppy Louise IrvineDental Hygienist Associate MemberYorkshire and Northern
Sara Amina JalloulOrthodontic TherapistAssociate Member Wessex & Oxford
Maria de los Llanos Martinez AssocFCGDentDental TherapistAssociate FellowOverseas
Caroline PersaudClinical Dental Technician Associate MemberWessex & Oxford
Carolyn Roberts Dental Nurse Associate MemberWales
Michaela Christina Robinson Dental Therapist Associate Fellow Wessex & Oxford
Georgina Smith Dental Nurse Associate Member South Thames
Tyra Anne Watt Dental Therapist Associate Member West & North Scotland

The successful candidates have each been awarded a fully-funded place, worth £375, on a three-day training course in mentoring and coaching. Delivered online by UMD Professional – an organisation with more than thirty years’ experience of establishing coaching and mentoring practices within medical and legal organisations – the short course takes place over two days in November 2025 and one in January 2026, with eight weeks of assimilation and application and a 30-minute 1:1 supervision session in between.

Course content will include:

  • What are coaching and mentoring?
  • Skills, knowledge, attributes and behaviours required in coaching and mentoring
  • A personal SWOT
  • Contracting in coaching and mentoring
  • Understanding boundaries
  • Communication theories:
    • Shannon and Weaver
    • Transactional analysis
    • Johari
    • Assertiveness
  • Objectivity v emotional response and unconscious bias
  • Setting meaningful objectives and action planning
  • Giving feedback
  • The GROW model
  • The OSCAR model
  • Scaling
  • Reflection
  • Successes and challenges
  • Cognitive distortion
  • The role of emotional intelligence
  • Supervision, group supervision and peer review
  • Action learning using delegate examples

The award was made possible by the generous donation through Prof Avijit Banerjee FCGDent of sponsorship by Foundation Nakao. Also known as The Nakao Foundation for Worldwide Oral Health, it was founded by Makato Nakao, Chairman of GC Corporation, a leading manufacturer of dental materials and equipment. (GC also partners with the College on the CGDent-GC Award for Foundation Trainees.)

To enter the award, participants each submitted an application form stating how they would be able to apply their mentoring or coaching skills in practice during the assimilation and application period, and how they would apply the learning to support less experienced colleagues thereafter. The award was open to all Dental Care Professional members of the College.

Establishing a mentoring and coaching culture is key to the College’s commitment to workforce diversity, inclusion, and wellbeing. In promoting effective mentoring practice, we aim to foster appropriate support in the career pathway progression for all members of the oral healthcare team. Our aspiration is to cultivate a community of College members amongst Dental Care Professionals who are equipped and confident to nurture their peers.

It is anticipated that the Foundation Nakao – CGDent Award 2026 will open soon. To register your interest in the 2026 award and receive notifications as soon as applications open, email [email protected] with the subject line “Foundation Nakao – CGDent Award 2026”.

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