Dental deserts: where you can — and can't — get an NHS dentist
Data updated 12 October 2026 · Journalists: this data is free to use with attribution to DentistTracker — contact us for breakdowns.
We check the official availability of every NHS dental practice in England every day. The picture in October 2026: just 32% of 5,814 practices say they're accepting new adult NHS patients. In 66 parliamentary constituencies, not a single tracked practice is accepting.
Acceptance rate by region
| Region | Practices | Accepting new patients | Rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| Yorkshire and The Humber | 571 | 93 | 16% |
| North East | 256 | 42 | 16% |
| South West | 518 | 89 | 17% |
| South East | 973 | 241 | 25% |
| North West | 799 | 219 | 27% |
| East of England | 602 | 175 | 29% |
| East Midlands | 427 | 126 | 30% |
| London | 1043 | 497 | 48% |
| West Midlands | 625 | 357 | 57% |
The 20 hardest places to find an NHS dentist
Parliamentary constituencies ranked by share of practices accepting new adult NHS patients (minimum 5 tracked practices).
| Constituency | Practices | Accepting | Rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| Liverpool West Derby | 12 | 0 | 0% |
| Congleton | 9 | 0 | 0% |
| North East Cambridgeshire | 5 | 0 | 0% |
| Hartlepool | 9 | 0 | 0% |
| Selby | 5 | 0 | 0% |
| Farnham and Bordon | 8 | 0 | 0% |
| Waveney Valley | 6 | 0 | 0% |
| Corby and East Northamptonshire | 7 | 0 | 0% |
| York Outer | 10 | 0 | 0% |
| West Lancashire | 14 | 0 | 0% |
| Mid Dorset and North Poole | 9 | 0 | 0% |
| Rutland and Stamford | 9 | 0 | 0% |
| Leeds North West | 13 | 0 | 0% |
| Poplar and Limehouse | 11 | 0 | 0% |
| Richmond and Northallerton | 14 | 0 | 0% |
| Fareham and Waterlooville | 12 | 0 | 0% |
| Stockton North | 12 | 0 | 0% |
| Chorley | 10 | 0 | 0% |
| South Ribble | 10 | 0 | 0% |
| Burnley | 11 | 0 | 0% |
Towns where no practice is accepting
Larger towns (4+ NHS practices) where zero practices currently report accepting new adult patients — check each town's page for children-only options and nearby alternatives.
Where availability is best
| Constituency | Practices | Accepting | Rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dudley | 11 | 11 | 100% |
| Walsall and Bloxwich | 12 | 12 | 100% |
| Tipton and Wednesbury | 12 | 12 | 100% |
| Birmingham Hodge Hill and Solihull North | 13 | 12 | 92% |
| Coventry East | 10 | 9 | 90% |
| Peckham | 10 | 9 | 90% |
| Chelmsford | 10 | 9 | 90% |
| West Bromwich | 9 | 8 | 89% |
| Eltham and Chislehurst | 14 | 12 | 86% |
| Birmingham Perry Barr | 14 | 12 | 86% |
About this data
Every figure on this page comes from what practices themselves report to the NHS website, re-checked daily by DentistTracker — see our full methodology. "Accepting" means the practice reported taking new adult NHS patients for routine care at our latest check (12 October 2026). Because we track daily, these figures move — ask us for trend data over time.
Looking for a dentist yourself? Check live availability in your town.