A view from the Chair: Council’s discussions in February; hearing from external stakeholders; reviewing progress on sustainability, EDI, education quality assurance and research

Welcoming external stakeholders

We invited the British Dental Association (BDA) to present at our public Council meeting in February – it was excellent to hear what’s important to their members, what worries them and the BDA’s thoughts on the role of regulation in this regard.

One of the goals that we share is the need to improve the experience of fitness to practise. Addressing the climate of fear is one of the central foundations of the GDC’s strategy for 2026-2028. We know that fitness to practise investigations can take too long and can feel overly complex often leading to feelings of mistrust, unfairness and more widely, a fear of the process and of the GDC. And as a result, it can negatively impact the mental health and wellbeing of those involved. We are committed to improving how we do things but also how quickly we can resolve cases without compromising patient safety. 

While we have made improvements at the earlier stages of the process, we know that there is more to do in the later stages. Timeliness is an issue that really matters to the Council and we want to better understand what is driving it and what we and others can do to improve it. We want to work closely with dental professionals and our partners to better understand where the current process has the most negative impact on the mental health and wellbeing of those involved and are working collaboratively to address this. If you or your organisation want to share your thoughts with Council on this important topic, we would welcome hearing from you at a future public meeting, and you can get in touch with me about that.

Eddie Crouch, Chair of the BDA, summed up his reflections of getting to know Council:

"This was a positive approach from the GDC. Such engagement can only help the Council understand what matters to our members, and for us to appreciate how Council members are seeking to drive improvement in regulation.

"Past Council meetings gave the impression that everything was done and dusted in private before we even got to public discussion. We're seeing real change here.

"We look forward to continuing to work with the Council in the future for the benefit of the profession and patients."

A sustainability strategy for the GDC

We discussed a first for the GDC – a sustainability strategy. Although we have considered sustainability in our business activities for some time, this is the first time we’ve adopted a formal approach. We know this is an issue that matters to dental professionals and the whole dental team has an impact, in how a practice uses consumables, manages waste and even how they travel to work.

Council discussed how we want to align our priorities around the core principles of the Government Greening Commitments with objectives and, in future, reporting around reducing greenhouse gas emissions, minimising waste and promoting resource efficiency, sustainable procurement and reducing the environmental impacts from ICT and digital services.

I am sure that our staff networks will get behind these plans too. In this first year, we need to gather data to get a benchmark of where we are now, then monitor and iterate as we learn more, and report on our performance so that we can be held to account.

Our commitment to equality, diversity and inclusion (EDI)

Council reviewed progress on our EDI objectives for 2024-2025, which contained 58 actions. All of this might sound a bit technical but we were pleased to hear that 42 of the 58 actions were implemented on time, with a further six partially implemented because much work has already completed. Eleven actions are upcoming, of which three are due for completion in Q2 2026, one in Q3 2026, two in Q4 2026, and five with dates yet to be determined.

We challenged ourselves with questions around robustness of the data and whether we have enough quantitative data to show where progress is being made or is lacking. Further work is underway to bring a rounded view of all of our monitoring and evaluation activities back to Council in April, including a dashboard to help to explain the priorities and progress, notably in pursuit of the Professional Standards Authority’s Standards of Good Regulation.

Progress on what we said we would do is very important. Listening to others with insight in this area is invaluable too. I know from meeting stakeholder organisations who have shared their lived experience of discrimination that EDI is of huge importance to the dental professions, as it is to patients and the public. Listening to these conversations is very valuable to shape our thinking and we will continue to do so.

An update on our priorities for education and research

February was a packed meeting and we also heard an overview of our education quality assurance activities, and the GDC’s research programme.

Assuring the quality of dental education is one of our most important roles. It ensures that dental professionals start their career confident in their skills and abilities and ready to practise safely, helping patients with their oral healthcare. We have reviewed and approved 15 new programme submissions since September 2024 and seen an increase in universities enquiring about becoming dental authorities, a status awarded by the Privy Council. Two new dental schools were approved and one of these providers was awarded Dental Authority Status in 2025.

Our guidance for education providers seeking to establish new dental schools in the UK has been well received and used. It explains the timescales and requirements for applying, offering detailed, step-by-step guidance to navigating the submission process. 

The GDC’s research programme is often cited as a recognised source of insight and evidence about the dental sector and the experience of dental professionals, patients and the public. One of the priorities in the GDC’s strategy is to continue to build a robust evidence base both to inform our work and to support sector-wide discussions and initiatives, for the benefit of patients, the professions and public protection.

Council is assured that the research programme is meeting this aim, and that our commitment to evidence-based policy development and operational improvements is well supported. We are engaging on the right sector-wide issues and continuing to innovate too. This year we expect to launch public, student and registrant panels which will allow us to provide for the systematic involvement of user voices across all of our work.

Sharing knowledge and building partnerships

It was refreshing to hear first-hand from the BDA, and the time we spent together in the meeting and beforehand enriched our mutual understanding of our strengths, priorities and goals. I am keen to hear from patients, dental professionals and other organisations who share our objectives around health and uphold the high standards in the professions. I will continue to use my stakeholder engagement, the GDC’s visits to dental settings, our attendance at industry conferences and events, the Dental Leadership Network, and attendance at our public Council meetings to bring organisations together to share knowledge and build partnerships.

Our vision is to be a trusted and effective regulator, supporting dental professionals to provide safe and effective care for their patients. We will only achieve this by working with others and I and Council are committed to continuing to do so.