The Government plans to tackle the challenges patients face when trying to access National Health Service dental care with a rescue plan to provide 700,000 more urgent dental appointments, and to recruit new dentists to areas that need them most. To rebuild dentistry in the long term and increase access to NHS dental care, we will reform the dental contract, with a shift to focus on prevention and the retention of NHS dentists.<\/p>
The local integrated care boards (ICBs) for Hitchen are also taking actions to support access to dental services. In May 2024, the Bedfordshire, Luton and Milton Keynes ICB introduced a Dental Access Pilot which all patients can access via the NHS111 service. This pilot involves a small cohort of dental contractors working across four areas, providing additional dental sessions on evenings, weekends, and bank holidays.<\/p>
The Hertfordshire and West Essex ICB has been running a pilot scheme since December 2023 which provides additional urgent appointments during the day and in the evenings, as well as over weekends, to patients who are referred via NHS111.<\/p>"} , "answeringMember" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/members/4359", "label" : {"_value" : "Biography information for Stephen Kinnock"} } , "answeringMemberConstituency" : {"_value" : "Aberafan Maesteg"} , "answeringMemberPrinted" : {"_value" : "Stephen Kinnock"} , "dateOfAnswer" : {"_value" : "2024-07-25", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} , "isMinisterialCorrection" : {"_value" : "false", "_datatype" : "boolean"} , "questionFirstAnswered" : [{"_value" : "2024-07-25T14:17:10.177Z", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} ]} , "answeringDeptId" : {"_value" : "17"} , "answeringDeptShortName" : {"_value" : "Health and Social Care"} , "answeringDeptSortName" : {"_value" : "Health and Social Care"} , "date" : {"_value" : "2024-07-22", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} , "hansardHeading" : {"_value" : "Dental Services: Hitchin"} , "houseId" : {"_value" : "1"} , "legislature" : [{"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/terms/25259", "prefLabel" : {"_value" : "House of Commons"} } ], "questionText" : "To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to help reduce the time taken to access dental services in Hitchin constituency.", "registeredInterest" : {"_value" : "false", "_datatype" : "boolean"} , "tablingMember" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/members/5000", "label" : {"_value" : "Biography information for Alistair Strathern"} } , "tablingMemberConstituency" : {"_value" : "Hitchin"} , "tablingMemberPrinted" : [{"_value" : "Alistair Strathern"} ], "uin" : "1167"} , {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/resources/1669015", "AnsweringBody" : [{"_value" : "Department for Science, Innovation and Technology"} ], "answer" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/resources/1669015/answer", "answerText" : {"_value" : "
Ministers and officials at the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology are in regular contact with our arm\u2019s-length bodies and other government departments. To support effective policy development and to reduce administration, we do not routinely publish details of each of these conversations.<\/p>
<\/p>
I refer the Hon. Member to the letter from my Rt. Hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology published on 28 October and the response from Professor Dame Ottoline Leyser sent on 30 October.<\/p>
(https://twitter.com/michelledonelan/status/1718291791861182514<\/a>; https://www.ukri.org/publications/ceo-response-to-the-open-letter-from-the-secretary-of-state/<\/a>)<\/p>"} , "answeringMember" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/members/4874", "label" : {"_value" : "Biography information for Andrew Griffith"} } , "answeringMemberConstituency" : {"_value" : "Arundel and South Downs"} , "answeringMemberPrinted" : {"_value" : "Andrew Griffith"} , "dateOfAnswer" : {"_value" : "2023-11-16", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} , "groupedQuestionUIN" : {"_value" : "1166"} , "isMinisterialCorrection" : {"_value" : "false", "_datatype" : "boolean"} , "questionFirstAnswered" : [{"_value" : "2023-11-16T14:16:49.91Z", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} ]} , "answeringDeptId" : {"_value" : "216"} , "answeringDeptShortName" : {"_value" : "Science, Innovation and Technology"} , "answeringDeptSortName" : {"_value" : "Science, Innovation and Technology"} , "date" : {"_value" : "2023-11-09", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} , "hansardHeading" : {"_value" : "UK Research and Innovation"} , "houseId" : {"_value" : "1"} , "legislature" : [{"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/terms/25259", "prefLabel" : {"_value" : "House of Commons"} } ], "questionText" : "To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, if she will publish all correspondence between (a) her, (b) Ministers or (c) officials in her Department and officials at UKRI between 30 October and 2 November.", "registeredInterest" : {"_value" : "false", "_datatype" : "boolean"} , "tablingMember" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/members/4436", "label" : {"_value" : "Biography information for Cat Smith"} } , "tablingMemberConstituency" : {"_value" : "Lancaster and Fleetwood"} , "tablingMemberPrinted" : [{"_value" : "Cat Smith"} ], "uin" : "1167"} , {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/resources/1462567", "AnsweringBody" : [{"_value" : "Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities"} ], "answer" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/resources/1462567/answer", "answerText" : {"_value" : "