Typically, dentists work in the community as self-employed practitioners in general practice dentistry, providing dental care to the public under the National Health Service (NHS) and/or privately. Other career dentists work as salaried staff within a wide ranging variety of organisations including
- Schools and community dentistry
- NHS hospital dentistry, including university teaching hospitals
- UK Armed Forces, both home and war zones
- Larger, corporate practices
- Industry, for example on a large cruise ship
Dentists in the Public Health sector are usually referred to as Dental Officers and work in the Community Dental Service. This service is known in England as the Salaried Primary Dental Care Service (SPDCS)) and is managed the local Primary Care Trusts or PCT. They provide dental care to adults and children with special needs and disabilities, together with regular school visits to assess the quality of the school children’s teeth.
Dentists in the UK Armed Forces are commissioned officers who can rise to become a major general or RAF/Navy equivalent. Forces dentists provide a comprehensive range of dental services at all UK and foreign operational bases such as Afghanistan. The main training facility in the UK is located at Whittington Barracks in Staffordshire.
| Vocational dental practitioner (VDP), which is the year of work following qualification from university | £30,460 |
| Self-employed NHS contractor working self-set hours | £60,000 – £110,000 |
| Salaried posts in the Community Dental Service (CDS) known in England as the Salaried Primary Dental Care Service (SPDCS) | £37,344 – £79,875 |
| NHS Trust Hospital, Hospital dentists tend to be employed on short-term contracts (6-12 months) and work more irregular hours, with on-call responsibilities | £74,504 – £176,242 |
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