The people we spoke with expressed a high level of satisfaction with the service. People said they had not encountered problems in getting an appointment. On arriving for their appointment they did not usually have to wait long before being seen by a dentist. They said they had always been given a good explanation of the outcome of examination and of any treatment proposed. They had been given a treatment plan which set out the treatment to be carried out and its costs. They told us they had confidence in the service.

People's records included details of their medical history and of the examination by the dentist, the outcome, and where required, recommendations for treatment and follow up. The service had arrangements in place to protect people from abuse. Those included a policy, information for staff and staff training.

Procedures for protecting people from the risk of infection appeared satisfactory. Those included infection control policy and procedures, the organisation of work in key areas, arrangements for monitoring and occasional audit of the procedures. Copies of procedures, schedules of tasks and records of monitoring were maintained.

Arrangements for the induction of new staff and for staff training and continuing professional development ensured staff had the knowledge and skills to meet the needs of people using the service.