We carried out an announced comprehensive inspection on 23 July 2015.

The practice is owned by a sole provider who is the principal dentist in the practice. They are supported by a further six dentists, a dental hygienist, an orthodontic therapist, 10 dental nurses and four administration staff.

The practice provides NHS orthodontic, minor oral surgery and periodontology dental services to both adults and to children. The practice is open Mondays from 9.00am to 6.30pm, Wednesday and Thursdays from 9.00am to 6.00pm. Tuesday surgery finishes at 5pm and on a Friday the practice opens at 8.30am until 3pm but hours can be extended to 6pm if required. Services are available from 8am to 3pm on a Saturday by appointment only. Patients are referred to this service by a dental practitioner.

Mrs Catherine Barrs is the registered provider and the identified registered person for the practice. Registered persons have legal responsibility for meeting the requirements in the Health and Social Care Act 2008 and associated Regulations about how the practice is run. The registered manager is  Anna Sammut.

We viewed 10 CQC comment cards that had been left for patients to complete, prior to our visit, about the services provided. All of the comment cards reflected positive comments about the staff and the services provided. Patients commented that the practice was clean and hygienic, they found the staff very friendly and approachable and they found the quality of the dentistry to be excellent. They said explanations were clear and made the dental experience as comfortable as possible

The practice was providing care which was safe, effective, caring, responsive and well-led in accordance with the relevant regulations.

Our key findings were:

• The practice recorded and analysed significant events and complaints and cascaded learning to staff.
• Staff had received formal safeguarding training and knew the processes to follow to raise any concerns.
• There were sufficient numbers of suitably qualified staff to meet the needs of patients.
• Staff had been trained to deal with medical emergencies and appropriate medicines and life-saving equipment were readily available.
• Infection control procedures were in place and the practice followed published guidance.
• Patients’ care and treatment was planned and delivered in line with evidence based guidelines, best practice and current legislation.
• Patients received clear explanations about their proposed treatment, costs, benefits and risks and were involved in making decisions about it.
• Patients were treated with dignity and respect and confidentiality was maintained.
• The appointment system met the needs of patients and waiting times were kept to a minimum.
• There was an effective complaints system.
• The practice was well-led and staff felt involved and worked as a team.
• Governance systems were effective and there was a range of clinical and non-clinical audits to monitor the quality of services.
• The practice sought feedback from staff and patients about the services they provided.

We spoke with five patients, one representative of a patient and five staff. We also reviewed five electronic dental records and four staff files.

The patients told us that their treatment had been discussed and that they were able to make an informed decision about their treatment. One patient told us:” Everything was explained to me. I knew what treatment I was going to have, what the expected outcomes were going to be, how the procedure would be undertaken and what other options were available”.

All the patients spoke highly regarding the quality of care and professionalism displayed by the staff. One patient told us:” My care was absolutely fantastic. I had a real fear of having dental treatment but they very patiently talked me through the treatment. They really put me at ease”.

During our visit we observed and spoke with staff, they were able to demonstrate their awareness and knowledge of prevention and control of infection practices.

We saw that all dental treatment was provided by qualified dentists and the dental nurses were registered with the General Dental Council (GDC), the professional regulator of dental practitioners.

We viewed a wide range of audits and risk assessments and confirmed they were carried out on a regular basis. We also saw an extensive schedule of spot checks were carried out by the business manager.