Thursday, 5 November 2026

Good morning.

Your GDC bill is going up again.

But the interesting part isn't the extra £22.

It's what the regulator says it's paying for.

Also this week: Scotland has fundamentally changed prior approval, Compass now has an expiry date, and single-shade composite gets three years in the chair.

Let's get into it.

THE DRILL

The GDC has set the dentist Annual Retention Fee for 2027 at £720.

That's up from £698 this year: a 3.1% increase, matching August CPI.

The deadline for dentists is 31 December 2026.

Why the increase?

According to the GDC, Fitness to Practise.

It received 1,766 FtP concerns in 2025, up 26% in a year and from 1,134 in 2020.

The number of cases still open at assessment also rose 35% to 761.

The regulator says the additional revenue will help fund extra capacity now and longer-term changes intended to make FtP faster and less stressful.

It also says it has identified around £10 million in efficiency savings.

So yes, the bill has risen by £22.

But the more important test comes afterwards:

Does spending more actually make the process work better?

SCO: Since 1 November, general dental prior approval is no longer triggered simply because a treatment plan crosses a financial threshold.

Previously, courses costing more than £660 could require approval.

The new approach focuses instead on clinical considerations, alongside a two-tier system reflecting clinician experience.

The idea is to stop relatively low-risk treatment plans being delayed purely because their total cost crosses an arbitrary line.

Or, put more simply:

expensive no longer automatically means prior approval.

Orthodontics isn't included in this reform.

QUESTION OF THE WEEK

Researchers placed 120 NCCL restorations in 60 patients.

Each patient received both:

A) A single-shade “chameleon” composite

and

B) A conventional multi-shade composite

They followed them for 36 months.

Which performed better clinically?

A) Single-shade

B) Multi-shade

C) No clear difference

Have a think.

Answer near the bottom. ↓

PRACTICE OPS

Not tomorrow.

But it now has an expiry date.

NHSBSA says the NHS Dental Services Portal is due to replace Compass in February 2027.

Practices in England and Wales are being asked to prepare now.

The useful three-point check:

Is the right email address recorded in Compass?

Have the relevant users registered for the new portal?

Is there outstanding Compass activity you don't want hanging around during transition?

There will be considerably more guidance before February.

For now, the useful bit is simply knowing the migration isn't theoretical anymore.

It's three months away.

BREAK THE ICE

Try:

“I'll tell you what I'm seeing, but I'll also separate what actually needs treating from what just needs watching.”

Same examination.

Very different five minutes in the chair.

THE ANSWER

After 36 months, the single-shade and multi-shade composites showed no statistically significant difference in clinical performance.

There were seven losses overall:

2 single-shade restorations versus 5 multi-shade restorations.

Estimated retention was 96.7% and 91.7% respectively, but that numerical difference wasn't statistically significant.

Biological, functional and aesthetic outcomes were also clinically acceptable in both groups.

So for NCCLs, this study didn't find the simplified shade approach came with an obvious three-year penalty.

Important caveat:

one product pair, one indication and 60 patients.

Useful evidence for simplification.

Not permission to throw every shade tab in the bin.

THE LAST RINSE

“Close together gently for me.”

Patient bites with enough force to test the structural integrity of the building.

Gently.

We'll try that word again.