University calls for a dental school in the East

The appeal was made during an event announcing the launch of a new route which fast-tracks qualified doctors into jobs in the region and beyond.

David Maguire, UEA vice chancellor and president, reaffirmed the university’s commitment to its proposal to provide a Norwich dental school for the Eastern region.

East Anglia is the only region of England without a dental school, and consequently, it struggles to recruit and retain dentists, making it the most underserved area in the UK for dental care. According to data from the Local Government Association, Norfolk and Waveney have one of the lowest numbers of dentists per 10,000 people in the country.

David said, “Parts of East Anglia are among the worst ‘dental deserts’ in the country, and to provide the next generation of dentists for our region, UEA is proposing a new dental school.

“We welcome the Government’s plan to increase the number of undergraduate dental training places. In considering the establishment of new dental schools in underserved areas, we are asking the Government to allocate the new dentistry undergraduate places to East Anglia, where a new dental school can have the greatest impact.”