Government Response

The Government responded to this petition on Wednesday 4th September 2019

Dental nurses are usually employed directly by dental practice owners. Dental practice owners are responsible for decisions about dental nurses' terms and conditions of employment, including pay.

Decisions on the range of staff to employ and the rates of pay is a matter for dental practice owners. This is the case whether these are associate dentists, dental nurses or clinicians working in other areas of health care. Where dental practices hold an NHS contract, dental care professionals may work on the NHS contract providing NHS care as part of the dental team.

Dental practices (as non-NHS organisations) remain free to develop and adopt the terms and conditions of employment, including pay, that best help them attract and keep the staff they need. The Government would not force any employer to use an employment contract that is not right for them, their staff or the communities they serve. However, we hope good employers would set wage rates that reflect the skills and experience of their staff.

Dental nurses directly employed by an NHS provider, for example within an NHS hospital, are employed on Agenda for Change (AfC) terms and conditions. This is the national pay system for all non-medical staff and allocates posts to set pay bands using job evaluation. Dental nurses are generally employed on AfC pay band 4 which for 2019/20 pays £10.81 at the entry point and £12.16 per hour at the top of the pay band. Band 4 staff can be expected to progress to the top of the pay band after three years.

Department of Health and Social Care.