New NHS dentist appointments for Colchester... in Ipswich

The city's residents are set to benefit from thousands of extra NHS dental appointments but they’ll only be available at a facility around 20 miles away from the centre of Colchester.

The £2.2million contract has been awarded to the University of Suffolk Dental Community Interest Company and will provide an additional 18,000 hours of appointments each year to Suffolk and north east Essex residents.

The new service is expected to launch this winter and aims to address the current lack of availability for NHS dentistry in north Essex, but appointments will only be available at a facility located within the University of Suffolk in Ipswich.

Location - the appointments will be available at the University of Suffolk's James Hehir Building in Ipswich (Image: Google)

Labour parliamentary candidate for Colchester Pam Cox warned the additional hours in Ipswich “won’t help ease the pressures” on the city’s dentists.

She said: “Many people in Colchester find it really hard to get an appointment when they need one.

“This is made worse by the fact fewer dentists are taking on NHS patients.”

Labour candidate - Pam Cox (Image: Newsquest)

The location of the new clinic provides cause for concern with a lack of free parking in the Ipswich waterfront area, leaving patients needing to pay for parking in nearby car parks in addition to the cost of making the 20-mile journey.

The awarding of the new contract comes as a damning new report found people in the UK have been forced to pull their own teeth out at home because they cannot access or afford an NHS dentist.

The Health and Social Care Committee said there was evidence of pain and distress which is “totally unacceptable in the 21st century”.

Dentist - new appointments will be available at a clinic in Ipswich (Image: Rui Vieira/PA Wire)

The NHS website claimed three practices in Colchester were accepting adult NHS patients when checked.

But when contacted by the Gazette, two of the practices said they had lengthy waiting lists. The first said it would take until March next year to be seen while the second refused to commit to a date.

The third dentist surgery did not respond.

Lizzie Mappleback, who is the associate director of strategic change for NHS Suffolk and North East Essex, admitted “there is no quick fix” to the current dental crisis.

She added: “We are working to expand the service as quickly as possible, while ensuring the highest standards of patient safety.

“We ask the public to please bear with us as we establish this new NHS dental provision.”