Dentist offers more child places

The surgery withdrew NHS services for adults in 2006

A Cornish dental practice is offering to treat an extra 500 children under its NHS contract.

The decision by the White Rose Surgery in Camborne has been made to avoid having to pay money back to the health service.

The surgery will face financial penalties unless it does more dental work to reach set NHS targets.

Dentist Simon Smith said having to work to targets did not make sense, but local parents have welcomed the move.

Mr Smith said the government and primary care trust targets were based on units of dental activity (UDA).

He told BBC News: "If we do a filling on a child we get more credit for treating that child than if we just give them an examination.

"At this practice we run a preventative regime. A lot of the children patients don't really need anything doing at all, so we really don't get credits for treating them in that way."

Cornwall Primary Care Trust said most surgeries have hit the patient targets agreed under the new-style contracts, but those who do not will have to reimburse the NHS.

Jessica Curnow, a young mother from Camborne, said there was still a shortage of NHS dentists in the area and she was delighted the White Rose surgery was offering the extra places.

The surgery withdrew its NHS services for adults last April.