Proposed student bursary cuts

Under the new student funding proposals, the Government will scrap NHS bursaries for nurses, midwives and allied health professionals and replace with them with student loans, potentially freeing up about £800m a year.

Dental care professionals (DCPs) who take courses which are not affiliated with a university will be unable to receive student loans and therefore either have to cover the fee’s themselves or miss out entirely.

Workforce planning has suggested that there is actually a need to increase the number of dental hygienists and therapists in training.

Michaela ONeill, president of the BSDHT said: “This is a deeply concerning strategy which will affect at least three dental schools and lead to a significant decrease in the amount of DCP clinicians qualifying each year.

“The cuts will lead to potentially dedicated, enthusiastic and knowledgeable dental hygienists and DHTs being unable to enter their chosen profession and potentially diminish the quality of health services on offer for patients.