The year in review

Dr Mick Horton FCGDent, Chair of Trustees, reviews the College’s achievements over the past twelve months.

It’s an honour for me to take on the role of Chair of Trustees, following Janet Clarke MBE FCGDent who stepped down in April 2023. Janet remains with us as a Trustee, so we continue to benefit from her wise counsel and breadth of experience.

The last twelve months started with the President, Dr Abhi Pal FCGDent, giving oral evidence to the House of Commons Health and Social Care Select Committee on dental services in England, and drew to a close as the UK Government announced its “Dental Recovery Plan”. There’s no doubt that we live in febrile times, with the inadequacies and inequity of dental service provision ever more prominent in the public consciousness. The College is in a unique position to offer a constructive view: reflecting interests across the dental team, across the UK, and bridging private and NHS care provision. It is no surprise, then, that we find ourselves actively invited to contribute in the debate – and we seek to do so in a measured way, and with the independence, broad perspective and authority that you would expect. You will see more of our work in the year ahead to develop our policy thinking, with a new Parliament taking office later this year.

Core to our mission is dental education and training. The role of our College needs careful thought, in a rapidly evolving, diverse and confusing market: it is no longer enough for us to act as just another provider of training when others are better equipped for that role. But we are very clear that all dental professionals need support in making the right choices for their career progression and skills development. Building on the Career Pathways which we published in 2022, we have been working to develop our approach: helping dental professionals to make wise investment for their future. Certified Membership was opened to its first candidates early in 2023, providing mentored support. Later in the year, we added those qualifications which we judge to meet key requirements – “recognised qualifications” – to the CGDent Register of Members & Fellows. Watch out for further announcements as our longer-term plans fall into place.

It’s intimidating to be starting a career in dentistry these days, with so much choice of paths to follow, and pressure to follow the crowd. But there is help and support out there from committed and experienced members of the profession, and we think we can help. With the generous support of the Tom Bereznicki Foundation, in November we ran our first NextGen leadership event for dental students and Dental Foundation Trainees, in Manchester. Moving forward, we aim to build on this initiative.

Preventative care and advice is so obviously a long-term priority, and particularly for children; and yet the urgency of a lack of access to urgent treatment makes it difficult to keep prevention on the agenda. We are partnering with Haleon (formerly GSK) to develop our own thinking on the future role of dental practices, and the whole dental team, in this respect. A number of dental practices have generously hosted a series of discussions around the UK, and you will be hearing about the feedback and conclusions in the months ahead.

The Primary Dental Journal continues to grow as essential reading, and in 2023 we published three authoritative themed issues encompassing aesthetic dentistry, which spanned two issues, and dental trauma – essential references to have beside you. Beyond the themed issues, the PDJ is attracting an increasing number of exceptional papers, too, giving us two rich “General Dentistry” issues in the year. We are looking forward to themed issues in 2024/25 on Implant Dentistry and Oral Medicine.

Our Fellows’ Receptions are ever more eagerly awaited, and we filled the wonderful Cutlers’ Hall in June and in January – bringing together senior professionals to build new relationships and foster a community of leadership. We were honoured to recognise a number of achievements, including the admission of so many new Fellows of the College. We have plans to build on the Fellows Reception to offer more for our members and to strengthen bonds within the College.

Finally, our Honorary Founding President, Nairn Wilson CBE FCGDent, was recognised with a knighthood for his contribution to dentistry over a long and remarkable career – in which the formation of the College has surely been the particularly historic achievement (and highlighted in his citation). Sir Nairn continues to inspire us, as we work to build secure foundations for the future. The College’s own special recognition, the College Medal, was awarded to Andrew Hadden, who continues in his notable contribution to the College and profession as Editor of the College’s Clinical Examination & Record Keeping. Their service, and that of so many others, gives us hope for the future.

Thank you for your support.

Mick Horton

You may be interested in Janet Clarke’s blog reviewing the College’s second Annual Members’ Meeting in March 2023.

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Dental leaders discuss workforce challenges

Senior College members took part in a recent panel discussion on the question of ‘How do we support and retain our workforce and ensure that they have the right skills to meet future challenges?’.

The discussion covered skills development both for the individual and across the profession, the importance of teamwork to staff retention, making great places to work, supporting team members to manage stress, and preventing career burn out. Speaking on behalf of the College, Dr Abhi Pal FCGDent, then President, and Dr Debbie Reed FCGDent, Board Chair of the CGDent Faculty of Dental Nursing and Orthodontic Therapy, also pressed home the need for recognised Career Pathways for all members of the dental team, and the vital role of mentoring as part of the solution for addressing workforce retention issues. The other panel members were Dr Catherine Tannahill MCGDent, Director of Clinician Engagement of Portman Dental, and Dr Dhru Shah, CEO of Dentinal Tubules.

The session was part of a meeting of dental leaders from across the UK, which was held in London on 14 March on the theme of ‘Maintaining an effective workforce fit for the future’. The day also included a panel discussion on the government’s ‘Recovery Plan’ for NHS dentistry in England, and presentations from Andrea Sutcliffe CBE, Chief Executive of the Nursing and Midwifery Council, on role, values and culture; from Ashley Byrne FCGDent, Board Member of the Dental Laboratories Association, on the challenges facing dental technology; from Theresa Thorp, GDC Executive Director for Regulation, who provided insights from the GDC’s work pattern data exercise; and from Stefan Czerniawski, GDC Executive Director for Strategy, on provisional registration.  

The ‘Dental Leadership Network’ is convened quarterly by the General Dental Council to facilitate shared ownership in addressing key challenges facing the profession.

Dr Pal commented:

“The formation of the Dental Leadership Network is a positive step in bringing together key stakeholders and leaders within the profession to discuss current issues.”

Stefan Czerniawski said:  

“It’s really valuable for leaders across the dental sector to invest time in discussing the shared issues that affect us all and, most importantly, patients. Collaboration and ownership only works if the whole of the dental world is engaged.”

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Council elections 2024 – call for candidates

Nominations are now open for elections to twelve regional and role-based seats on the College Council, and all eligible members are invited to put themselves forward.

To stand for one of the eight regional seats being elected, you must be a Full Member, Associate Fellow or Fellow of the College (in any team role) and must live or work within that region, and be registered to that region with the College. The regional seats being elected in 2024 are:

  • Central London
  • Mersey and North West
  • North East and North West Thames
  • South West
  • Trent and East Anglia
  • Wales
  • West Midlands
  • Yorkshire and Northern

To stand for one of the four role-based (Faculty) seats being elected, you must be an Associate Member, Full Member, Associate Fellow or Fellow of the College, and must be registered with the GDC (or overseas equivalent) in a relevant role for the seat. The role-based seats being elected in 2024 are:

  • Faculty of Dental Hygiene & Dental Therapy
  • Faculty of Dental Nursing & Orthodontic Therapy
  • Faculty of Dental Technology & Clinical Dental Technology
  • Faculty of Dentists

Please note that for electoral purposes, all members have been automatically assigned to one of the College’s four faculties based on the team role in which they have registered their College membership.

All members eligible to stand in one or more seats as at 15 March 2024 have been emailed a link to the nominations website by the College’s election services provider, Mi-Voice. 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, the names of two supporting members, and to submit an election statement. Further information on the role, nomination requirements and the election timetable can be found in the Notice of Elections.

Full Members, Associate Fellows and Fellows in the regions listed above may stand simultaneously for both the regional and role-based seats for which they are eligible, and to do so must submit a separate nomination form for each seat.

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 you have. Please get in touch via [email protected]

The deadline for receipt of nominations is Monday 15 April.

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In memory of John Brookman, 1931-2024

John Brookman FCGDent, FFGDP(UK)(Hon.), one of the founding board members of the Faculty of General Dental Practice, and an instrumental founder of Vocational Training for GDPs, passed away peacefully on 27 January, aged 92.

John at the teaching laboratory bearing his name at the Guildford Education Centre

Born David John Brookman in Watford in 1931, he pursued a desire to be a dentist from childhood, and in 1954 qualified from the Royal Dental Hospital, London, with both the LDS and BDS.

Working as a general dental practitioner in Surrey, in 1957 he married Penny, with whom he had four children, Mark, Lucy, James and Claire.

In the early 1960s, he suffered a mental health breakdown and had to suspend his dental career. With support from friends and family he made a full recovery, during which he re-trained as a teacher. This proved to be a pivotal experience in his return to dentistry.

In 1970, he purchased a practice in Banstead, expanding it to five full-time dentists with part-time associates and hygienists, serving a mix of NHS and private patients.

In 1973, he became an assistant dental tutor for the British Postgraduate Medical Federation. Recognising the gap between the degree of competence required for daily dental practice and the level acquired at dental school, from 1975 he established the UK’s first Vocational Training scheme for general dental practitioners in Guildford. This laid the foundation for nationwide vocational training, which was later organised on a voluntary basis for some years by the Committee for Vocational Training (of which he was a member) before it became a statutory requirement in 1993. He also set up educational programmes for dental tutors and teachers, introducing clinical audit and peer review and emphasising problem-solving through practical application.

He had university links including being a research lecturer at the Eastman Dental Hospital  and was Senior Dental Advisor to Surrey Health Services and the Thames Post Graduate Regions. It was a particular pleasure for him to be present for the naming after him of the skills room at the Guildford Education Centre in 2013 to commemorate his achievements.

He passed the Membership in General Dental Surgery examination of the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh, achieved Fellowship of the Faculty of Dental Surgery of the Royal College of Surgeons of England (RCS) and was Chairman of the UK Conference of Dental Advisors. He was also President of the British Dental Association’s Southern Counties branch, a founder advisor to the editorial board of The Dentist, and co-produced three educational films with the editor of the British Dental Journal on techniques for fissure sealing, impressions and endodontics.

A founder of the College of General Dental Practitioners of the United Kingdom (CGDP) – one of several organisations established at the time to pursue the postgraduate educational interests of general practice dentists – he was among those involved in discussions which ultimately united like-minded GDPs behind the formation of the Faculty of General Dental Practitioners at the RCS, and in 1992 he became one of the Faculty’s founding board members.

John and Penny retired to Keswick in 1993, and he embraced life, enjoying fell walking and wood turning. They were both active members of the village church and his Christian faith was hugely important to him, shaping how he lived and worked.

He received Honorary Life Membership of the BDA in 1999, and in 2012 was awarded Honorary Fellowship of the FGDP in recognition of his significant contributions both to postgraduate dental education and to the Faculty’s history. He joined the College of General Dentistry at its launch in 2021, later becoming a Life Fellow.

Alongside his many professional accomplishments and community commitments, he was regarded by those who knew him as a true gentleman.

Sadly, Penny died from cancer in 2007. John continued to walk the fells well into his eighties, and it would have meant the world to him that he was able to live out his life in the home he loved so much.

Please note this obituary was amended in March 2024 in light of further biographical information

Notice of elections

Elections will soon be held for twelve regional and role-based seats on the College Council, and all eligible members are invited to consider standing.

The Council is the voice of our members.  It oversees our role as a professional body and guides the Trustee Board on the development of the College to fulfil its mission.

Elections are being held this year for eight of the thirteen regional seats on the Council, and for the first time also to four seats representing specific roles within the dental team.

Nominations will be open from Friday 15 March to Monday 15 April. Following validation of nominations, voting will open during the week commencing 22 April and will close 30 days later, with the results announced shortly thereafter.


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 2024 – June 2027, during which you would be expected to attend face-to-face Council meetings on three Fridays each year, as well as regular online meetings and occasional committees outside of business hours. Your first Council meeting would be on Friday 21 June 2024 in London. 

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

You would be able to stand for re-election in 2027, 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. A role profile is available below.


Eligibility

To stand for election to a regional seat, you must be a Full Member, Associate Fellow or Fellow of the College (in any team role) and must live or work within that region, and be registered to that region with the College.

To stand for election to a role-based seat, you must be an Associate Member, Full Member, Associate Fellow or Fellow of the College, and must be registered with the GDC (or overseas equivalent) in a relevant role for the seat. All members are automatically assigned to one of the College’s four faculties for electoral purposes, based on the team role in which they have registered their College membership.

If you are a member considering upgrading your membership in order to stand or vote in an election, or a non-member considering joining, you will need to allow at least two weeks ahead of the relevant date(s) below for this process to complete.


Council seats for election in 2024

Nomination are sought for the following seats:

  • Central London
  • Mersey and North West
  • North East and North West Thames
  • South West
  • Trent and East Anglia
  • Wales
  • West Midlands
  • Yorkshire and Northern
  • Faculty of Dental Hygiene & Dental Therapy
  • Faculty of Dental Nursing & Orthodontic Therapy
  • Faculty of Dental Technology & Clinical Dental Technology
  • Faculty of Dentists

College electoral regions

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


Nominations process

On 15 March 2024 (tbc), all eligible members will be emailed a link to the nominations website by the College’s election services provider, Mi-Voice.

If you are interested in standing for election, you will need to complete the nomination process via that link (once received), 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. For regional seats, your supporters must each be a Full Member, Associate Fellow or Fellow of the College. For role-based seats, your supporters must each be an Associate Member, Full Member, Associate Fellow or Fellow of the College. 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]

Please note that this item was amended on 28 February 2024 to reflect the addition of Central London to the list of regional seats being elected this year

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Presidency

Recruitment for new President

The College is in the process of appointing its next President, and all full members are eligible to apply.

The President chairs and represents the elected College Council, is accountable to the Board of Trustees, and is the College’s most senior and visible office holder. (S)he will work closely with the Chief Executive to deliver the College’s ambitions as a professional body and charity in the public interest, and will provide leadership across the profession at a critical time on the journey to secure dentistry’s own Royal Charter.

The current President, Dr Abhi Pal, was elected the eleventh and final Dean of the Faculty of General Dental Practice UK (FGDP) in 2021, and has served the majority of his three-year term of office as the first President of the College. The second President will be the first to be appointed by the College since its independence.

While Deans of the FGDP were elected by and strictly from within the Faculty Board, all Full Members, Associate Fellows and Fellows of the College are now eligible to apply for the post of College President, and the appointment will be made by a selection panel with a majority drawn from the elected College Council.

The Presidency is a paid position for 1.5 days per week, but demands flexibility in time commitment, with frequent travel to London and other parts of the UK. A role profile is available below.

Applications should be made by email, headed “President”, to [email protected], attaching a CV and covering letter, and citing two supporters who are also current Full Members, Associate Fellows or Fellows of the College. College membership status can be checked on our Member Register.

The closing date for applications is Monday 18 March 2024.

Interviews are expected to be held in the week beginning 8 April, and the appointee will take office at the College Council meeting in London on Friday 21 June 2024.

If you have questions or would like a confidential discussion about the role, please contact Simon Thornton-Wood PhD, Chief Executive of the College, at [email protected]

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Trustee Board changes

Marie Parker and Jane Clarke have been appointed as Trustees of the College. They are the third and fourth new Trustees appointed since the College opened its doors to members in 2021, with Fred Thomson and Onkar Dhanoya having been appointed in 2022.

(l-r) Marie Parker, Onkar Dhanoya, Jane Clarke and Fred Thomson, Trustees of the College of General Dentistry

Marie Parker FCGDent is the Deputy Programme Director of Hygiene and Therapy at University College Hospital NHS Foundation Trust London.  Since qualifying as a dental nurse, she has worked in various areas of dentistry and completed a number of leadership and management qualifications, as well as a Master’s in Education. An advocate and promoter of dental nursing careers, and of improving the accessibility of education and training for all registered dental care professionals, she has been involved in the training and education of dental nurses and other members of the dental team throughout most of her career.  She is a past Chair and Trustee of the National Examining Board for Dental Nurses, and Co-chair of the Dental Trailblazers group.

Dr Onkar Dhanoya FCGDent has been Principal Dentist at Honour Health, a mixed NHS-and-private dental group, since 1986, providing treatments including dental implants, facial aesthetics and orthodontics at its three practices across the North East of England. He graduated from Newcastle University in 1985, is a Fellow of the International College of Dentists and represented the Yorkshire and Northern region on the FGDP National Board, and later on the CGDent Council, from 2014-22. Chair of North Tyne LDC, and past President of the BDA’s Northern Counties branch, he has been a clinical teacher at Newcastle Dental Hospital since 1995 and a Director of Dental Protection since 2019. He served two terms as Vice Dean of the FGDP, was an MJDF examiner for ten years, and chaired the FGDP’s Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Programme Board.

Jane Clarke is a governance specialist in the professional body and not-for-profit sectors, and since retiring in 2020 has been appointed a Director of Landscape Services, Trustee of the Landscape Institute, and an Independent Person for a group of borough councils in Surrey. Previously she was Director of Governance Support and Group Secretary at the Royal College of Nursing; Company Secretary of its commercial subsidiary, RCNi; and a Founder of the RCN Foundation. From 1995-2006 she worked for the National Trust as Assistant Director for Committee Services and Administration, Deputy Secretary then Secretary, and prior to that she enjoyed a seventeen-year career at the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors, where her posts included Head of the Executive Office and Director of Policy Coordination.

Fred Thomson is a solicitor specialising in procurement law. After graduating in computing, he became an IT systems engineer and consultant and programme manager, later completing a Bachelor’s in Law and Postgraduate Diploma in Legal Practice. He also holds an MSc in Engineering and Management, an LLM and a Level 7 Diploma in Strategic Management, and is a Member of the Institute of Engineering and Technology, Fellow of both the Institution of Analysts and Programmers and the Institute of Leadership, and a Chartered Fellow of the Chartered Management Institute. An officer in the Royal Naval Reserve for over 20 years, he holds the rank of Commander. He was also a mentor for the charity IntoUniversity, which helps young people achieve the best results they can in accessing higher education.

Members of the Board of Trustees, who serve three-year terms of office, are accountable for the fulfilment of the College’s legal and regulatory duties as a charity, and for ensuring the proper running of the organisation.

The other members of the Trustee Board are Dr Mick Horton FCGDent, former Dean of the Faculty of General Dental Practice UK, who has served since 2017 and became Chair earlier this year; Dr Janet Clarke MBE FCGDent, former Deputy Chief Dental Officer for England, who joined the Board in 2019 and served as Chair from 2020-23; and Neil Sawbridge, an experienced banking and leasing Chief Financial Officer who has been an independent Trustee since 2017.

The new appointees have succeeded Dr Kevin Lewis FCGDent, former Dental Director at Dental Protection, who served on the Board from 2017-22 and is now a College Ambassador; fellow former dental Trustee Professor Liz Kay MBE FCGDent, Foundation Dean and Emeritus Professor at Peninsula Dental School (2019-22); Kate Gregory, a legal consultant and qualified litigator (2019-22); and fellow former independent Trustee Lesley Pan, who specialises in building and developing charitable enterprises (2019-23).

Other former members of the Board include Professor Sir Nairn Wilson CBE FCGDent, Past President of the British Dental Association and Honorary Founding President of the College, who served as Chair from 2017-20; Dr Ian Mills FCGDent, former Dean of the Faculty of General Dental Practice UK, who was a Trustee from 2018-21; and Duncan Rudkin, Chief Executive and Registrar of the General Pharmaceutical Council, who served from 2017-19.

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Prestigious Presidency for College Fellow

College Fellow Dr Pankaj Patel has taken up post as President of the Pierre Fauchard Academy.

A private practitioner who trained in Mumbai, is based in Nairobi, and has also practised and studied in the UK, Germany, Switzerland and the US, he was previously the organisation’s Trustee for Africa and International Vice President.

The first Specialist in General Dental Practice registered with the Kenya Medical Practitioners and Dental Council, he was a senior lecturer and examiner in restorative dentistry at the University of Nairobi for over 15 years, has supported the training of dental nurses in Kenya and set up the country’s first MFGDP study group. He is a member of the Kenya Medical Association and has served on the Council of the Kenya Dental Association and on the Medical Advisory Committee of the Kenya Hospital Association. An approved dentist for the UN in Kenya and the US embassies in East and Central Africa, he oversees the dental department of the Jalaram Medical Services charity, is a Founder Trustee of the nascent College of Dental Surgeons of Eastern Africa, and has been awarded The Order of Grand Warrior of Kenya in recognition of his services to the nation in dentistry.   

He was a Fellow and the first elected Overseas Representative of the former Faculty of General Dental Practice UK, is a Life Member of the Society for Advancement of Anaesthesia in Dentistry, and has been awarded Fellowships by the Royal Society of Health, Royal Society of Medicine, International College of Dentists, American College of Dentists and Academy of Dentistry International.

Dr Abhi Pal, President of the College of General Dentistry, said:

“I was delighted to learn of Pankaj’s election to the Presidency of the Pierre Fauchard Academy. Such a prestigious post is a well-deserved honour for someone who has already done so much for dentistry internationally. Many congratulations on behalf of the College, we wish him all the best for his term as President.”

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Birmingham meet-and-greet

Friday 17 – Saturday 18 May 2024, 9.00am – 5.30pm, Birmingham

Hall 5, National Exhibition Centre, Pendigo Way, Marston Green, Birmingham B40 1NT

The College invited all dental professionals to visit its exhibition stand (Q01) at British Dental Conference and Dentistry Show 2024

College members and non-members alike were encouraged to come and introduce themselves, to find out more about the College and have their queries answered.

Perhaps you have questions about your membership or how to access your benefits? Or want to know whether you’re eligible for Full Membership, Associate Fellowship or Fellowship? Or you wonder how Certified Membership works, what Life Fellowship is, or how to add your qualifications to the Member Register?

Maybe you’re a former member of FGDP(UK) uncertain of your College status, or the correct way to present your Faculty post-nominals?

Or perhaps you’re a non-member who’s not yet heard much about the College and just wants to find out why we were set up, what our plans are or how we can help you in your career?

Whatever your query, senior College members and staff will be there throughout the conference to help you out, and we’ll have live access to our systems to help solve membership queries on the spot.

Or even if you don’t have a query, we’d be delighted to meet you!

The College is also the headline education partner for the Enhanced CPD Theatre, where it is hosting four lectures.

The British Dental Conference and Dentistry Show is the UK’s largest dental event, giving you access to 400 exhibitors and 9,000 fellow dental professionals, and offering 200 lectures across 11 CPD theatres.

It’s FREE to attend for all registered dental professionals – just register via the button below:

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London meet-and-greet

Friday 6- Saturday 7 October 2023, 9.00am – 5.30pm, London

Hall N9, ExCeL LondonRoyal Victoria Dock, 1 Western Gateway, London E16 1XL

The College invited all dental professionals to visit its exhibition stand (G52) at Dentistry Show London 2023.

College members and non-members alike were encouraged to come and introduce themselves, to find out more about the College and have their queries answered.

Perhaps you have questions about your membership or how to access your benefits? Or want to know whether you’re eligible for Full Membership, Associate Fellowship or Fellowship? Or you wonder how Certified Membership works, or what Life Fellowship is?

Maybe you’re a former member of FGDP(UK) uncertain of your College status, or the correct way to present your Faculty post-nominals?

Or perhaps you’re a non-member who’s not yet heard much about the College and just wants to find out why we were set up, what our plans are or how we can help you in your career?

Whatever your query, senior College members and staff will be there throughout the conference to help you out, and we’ll have live access to our systems to help solve membership queries on the spot.

Or even if you don’t have a query, we’d be delighted to meet you!

Dentistry Show London gives you access to over 180 exhibitors and 3,000 fellow dental professionals, and also offers 100 CPD lectures. Details of the College’s lectures are available here

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