The General Dental Council (GDC) says it has “made it easier” for dental professionals to restore their name to the registers so that they can practise in the UK.

The “small but important change” means that dental professionals who have been off the register for less than 12 months and have always complied with CPD, will be able to sign a declaration that it is up to date, rather than send us a copy of their full CPD record.

The GDC said:

“Every year, a number of dental professionals are removed from the register if they are no longer practising in the UK, or if they have not completed their annual renewal.

“This improvement should make it quicker and easier for dental professionals to restore, providing that they have always complied with the CPD requirements. The new process is already in place, in time for annual renewal for dental care professionals which starts shortly.

“In the meantime, we are urging all dental care professionals to log onto eGDC to check how much CPD they need to complete before they renew their registration. This can be done at any time to make sure that the minimum hours of CPD have been met. Dental professionals should get in touch with us if they do not understand what they need to do.

“Our primary purpose is to protect, promote and maintain the health, safety and wellbeing of the public and maintain public confidence in dental services. To achieve this, we register qualified dental professionals, set standards for the dental team, investigate complaints about dental professionals’ fitness to practise and work to ensure the quality of dental education.

“CPD is about keeping professional skills and knowledge up to date and is a vital part of being a member of the dental team. It ensures that dental professionals instil public confidence and have the tools needed to meet and maintain high professional standards.”

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