Satisfaction with NHS dentistry services varies between England, Wales and Scotland, with patients North of the border significantly happier than those in the South.
According to new data from the King’s Fund and Nuffield Trust’s Public Satisfaction with the NHS and Social Care in 2025 Survey, NHS dentistry satisfaction remains stubbornly low across the country as a whole, but different national approaches make a significant difference to public sentiment.
The survey, drawn from 1,460 respondents on specific services including dentistry, found that just 22% of people across Britain said they were satisfied with NHS dentistry, while 54% were dissatisfied.
The figures are broadly similar to last year and sit close to the lowest recorded since the survey began.
But Scottish respondents reported NHS dentistry satisfaction of 40%, significantly higher than England at 21% and Wales at a very-low 14%.
And Scotland was the only nation where respondents were more satisfied than dissatisfied.
The disparity is possibly due to the fact that Scotland, like Northern Ireland, operates an item-of-service model, where dentists are paid for each treatment delivered, while England and Wales have long relied on the UDA framework, which pays the same regardless of whether a course of treatment is simple or complex.
However, Wales will move away from UDAs from this month, shifting to a time-based model.
The King’s Fund said the survey does not measure the clinical competence of the professionals working within it, but rather public confidence in the overall system design.