Father unable to find NHS dentist in Chichester ends up registered 35 miles away in Handcross

John Marchant-Brodie said he contacted every dentist in the area when he and his family moved to Chichester from Dorking in December 2018.

He said: “We tried literally every single dentist in the area.

“Literally every single one told us they are not accepting NHS patients, they are oversubscribed.”

However he was told they could sign up as private patients, or join a £15 a month scheme.

SEE MORE: Struggle to access NHS dentistry in West Sussex made worse by pandemic

Even practices which advertised that they were taking NHS patients on their websites turned out not to be accepting when he called up.

None even had waiting lists they could add his name to.

John eventually managed to get himself and his family registered to a practice in Handcross – 35 miles away from their home and an hour’s drive away – from January 2021.

“What angered me is that every single dentist said yes, we can see you as a private patient,” he said.

“There’s space to see people, there’s appointments out there.”

He said he was worried about plans for 13,000 homes in Tangmere and other new housing in Oving and Fishbourne will add additional pressure.