£1.5 Million Funding Approved for Norfolk Dental School

The establishment of a dental school in Norfolk has progressed with a confirmed £1.5 million in funding. The Greater Norwich Growth Board has committed to providing these funds to the University of East Anglia (UEA). Professor David Maguire, UEA’s vice chancellor, described this as “an important step in our bid to deliver undergraduate dental training.” It is anticipated that such a training facility will lead to an increase in dentists practicing within the county, where numerous patients have encountered difficulties in securing NHS appointments. The health secretary previously characterized Norfolk as “the Sahara of dental deserts” due to this scarcity. Earlier this year, Wes Streeting informed Members of Parliament that Norfolk and Waveney had “only 36 dentists per 100,000 people,” in contrast to the national average of 53. Last year, over 1,000 individuals were required to visit Norfolk’s casualty departments due to the severe nature of their dental issues. The UEA stated that the School of Oral Health would incur a total cost of £3 million, with the university contributing the remaining half of the funds. The institution plans for the school to open next year. The expectation is that graduates from this school will be more inclined to work in Norfolk, thereby assisting local practices with recruitment efforts. The Growth Board, which comprises representatives from Norfolk, Norwich, Broadland, and South Norfolk councils, formally approved the funding for this project on Thursday afternoon. Professor Maguire commented that the decision constituted “great news,” adding, “Providing dental training here in Norwich will be a positive move towards helping local people get the care they need.” Earlier this week, Labour health minister Baroness Merren informed the House of Lords that while the government would not make the ultimate decision regarding a dental school, she would “encourage the University of East Anglia to take its proposals to the General Dental Council.”