Dental Professionals Hearing Service launched, highlighting hearings’ independence from GDC fitness to practice investigations

As part of the new service, a dedicated website now provides information including the different types of hearing, details of future and past hearings, and a summary of what dental professionals and witnesses can expect when attending a hearing.

The legislation the GDC operates under prevents the creation of an entirely independent hearings function and as such the new service remains legally part of, and accountable to, the GDC. The new dedicated hearings service, however, illustrates the regulator’s commitment to making improvements wherever it can while it waits for regulatory reform.

Lord Toby Harris, GDC chair said, “The independence of the hearing from any investigative process is a fundamental tenet of justice, but we know this separation at the GDC isn’t always understood by those going through the system. By making this change we are aiming to highlight this independence and thereby promote confidence in the fairness of the system.”