To ask the Minister of Health to detail the steps his Department is taking to ensure children aged under 18 have adequate access to NHS dental services.

I am aware of the challenges currently being experienced within General Dental Services (GDS) and I am committed to taking meaningful action to ensure the service performs for both patients and dental professionals.

This is why for many months now, the focus of my Department has been on improving access to GDS, particularly for high-need patients such as children, and establishing options to support the sustainability of dental practices. In March 2024, a £9.2m investment in GDS was announced, to include:

• £1m for newly registered child patients through the reestablishment of the Enhanced Child Examination (ECE) Scheme.

•£4.3m to fund a 30% enhancement to fees paid to dentists for health service fillings, extractions and root canal treatment for 2024/25. This will support public access to priority treatments.

•£3.9m for the treatment of high priority unregistered patients through a Dental Access Scheme (DAS).

The DAS commenced on 1st August 2024. There are currently 30 practices participating in the scheme, details of which (including participating practices) can be viewed at: https://online.hscni.net/dental-access-scheme/. To date the scheme has enabled the treatment of more than 9100 patients with an urgent or pressing dental condition.

From June to December 2024, over 22,400 newly registered children have benefitted from the Enhanced Child Examination scheme.

Evaluation carried out to date indicates that these measures have had a positive impact and my Department will continue monitor closely.

While interventions such as the DAS and ECE have been necessary to stabilise the service, long-term change will require sustained effort, rather than a single, one-off intervention. In December my officials presented a number of high-level options for the long-term future of dental services in Northern Ireland. To inform the most appropriate approach I have approved the commissioning of a General Dental Service cost of service review to be completed in 2025/26.