Administrator called in as dental practice shuts

A dental practice on the north Norfolk coast has closed, leaving patients searching for alternative surgeries to use.

Administrator FRP Advisory has been called in to Astradent, which has several dental branches around the UK.

The practices, including the one in Wells-next-the-Sea, were "mothballed" with immediate effect on 12 July.

FRP Advisory told the BBC that no staff had been laid off, but confirmed the practices had paused work on the NHS.

Keith Bunting, 92, from Wells, said he was worried because he was part-way through a procedure to treat a broken tooth.

"I was waiting to have it repaired and we'd got a date fixed, but now I don't know what's going to happen," he said.

His wife Margaret, 89, said she had called a practice in Fakenham, but "they are not accepting any more patients, so we haven't quite decided what to do".

Emily Kelly, 29, also from Wells, said there was already a lack of dental provision locally, and her partner had had to go to Peterborough for an emergency appointment.

"It will have a major impact because I wouldn't be able to go to another dentist because no-one is taking on new patients," she said.

"I only found out on social media, and I was quite shocked because they were sending out reminders for appointments and nobody had any idea that the dentist was closing. It's the talk of the town."

Joint administrator Philip Reynolds said that because of licensing issues, the business had not been formally closed.

He said regulatory requirements, such as Care Quality Commission registration, could affect a potential sale of the business as a going concern if they were allowed to lapse.

“What we are trying to do is find a solution and save the business," he said.

“We are in discussion with the NHS and we are hoping to resolve this as soon as possible.

“Unfortunately, we have had to mothball the operations of the dental practices. We are hoping to get to a solution imminently.”

Mel Catton, chairman of Wells Town Council, said: “It’s a shock to the town, especially as it was an NHS practice and it was beginning to be used by many people locally.

“Several people have had their procedures started and have to have further treatment, and others have been waiting a long time for their appointments. Now they’ve got to find someone else to go to - if they will be accepted.

“Not everyone can afford to go privately. The impact now is people have to travel miles to find an NHS dentist, and it’s very worrying for a town the size of Wells.”

Wells Coastal Health & Wellbeing said all other services at the Old Cottage Hospital site were operating as usual, and it told the BBC it was helping patients who had been affected.

It added that dental patients said they had been contacted by an automated service confirming appointments which had, in fact, been cancelled because of the administration process.

Steffan Aquarone, the new Liberal Democrat MP for North Norfolk, said he had been contacted by patients before he received an email from the Norfolk and Waveney Integrated Care Board.

"It will be hundreds if not thousands [of patients] affected in North Norfolk. I know it's a dental desert across the east of England, but in particular in North Norfolk," he said.

"Those who would have been lucky enough to have had regular dental appointments will be left high and dry.

"It does raise the question about the financial stability of providers when they can suddenly leave people with very acute surgery and treatment undone for financial management, and I'm very concerned about this."

A spokesperson for NHS Norfolk and Waveney Integrated Care Board, said: "We are working with the administrators FRP Advisory to consider how we manage the long-term provision of dental care for NHS patients affected by this news.

"One of our main priorities will be to ensure that NHS patients who are currently undergoing active treatment can complete their treatment and we aim to update patients as soon as possible.

"As outlined in our Long-Term Dental Plan, we are working hard to support local dental practices and improve access to dental care for people in Norfolk and Waveney where we know there are significant challenges."

The spokesperson added that anyone in Norfolk and Waveney who needed urgent dental treatment should contact NHS 111.

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