Getting NHS dental care

What NHS dental treatment costs, whether you pay at all, and how to actually get seen in St Austell — including the urgent route when you're in pain.

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What will it cost?

Whole groups of people get NHS dental treatment free. Tap anything that applies to you.

Tap an option above to see whether you pay.

NHS dental charges (2026/27)

Band	What it covers	You pay
Band 1	A check-up, advice, X-rays, a scale and polish if you need one, and planning any further treatment.	£27.90
Band 2	Everything in Band 1, plus fillings, root canal work and having teeth taken out.	£76.60
Band 3	Everything in Bands 1 and 2, plus crowns, dentures and bridges.	£332.10
Urgent	One urgent course of treatment to stop pain or deal with a problem — for example an emergency filling or an extraction.	£27.90

One charge covers a whole course of treatment — every appointment and every item needed to finish it, not each filling.

How to get seen

Step 1: Find a practice taking NHS patients

The NHS 'Find a dentist' service lists every practice near you and whether each one says it's currently taking new NHS patients — adults, children, or only in an emergency. The lists change, so it's worth calling a practice to check before you set out.

NHS — Find a dentist — search by postcode; filter for practices taking NHS patients

Step 2: If none are taking patients, join the waiting lists and keep checking

Practices open and close their NHS lists as their capacity changes, so it's worth asking each one to add you and checking back every few weeks. NHS Cornwall also runs a mobile dental van (operated by Smile Together) that visits communities for people on the NHS dental waiting list — being on a list is how you get invited when it comes near.

Step 3: In pain, swelling or bleeding? Get urgent dental care

You do not need to be registered with a dentist for urgent care, and you don't need a referral. Call NHS 111 or Cornwall's urgent dental line and you'll be assessed and given an urgent appointment if you need one. Call 999 only if swelling is affecting your breathing or swallowing, or after a serious injury to the mouth or face.

NHS 111

Phone: 111
Hours: 24 hours — assesses urgent dental problems and books you in

Smile Together — urgent dental care

Phone: 0333 405 0290
Hours: Cornwall & Isles of Scilly urgent/emergency dental service; you can refer yourself

Step 4: Community & special-care dentistry

Smile Together provides NHS community dental care from St Austell Community Hospital for people who can't be treated in an ordinary practice — for example because of a disability, severe anxiety or a medical condition. Access is by referral, so ask your GP, dentist or health worker to refer you.

St Austell Community Hospital (Smile Together)

Address: Porthpean Road, St Austell, PL26 6AA
Hours: NHS community & special-care dentistry — referral needed

Step 5: If you can't wait: paying privately

If you can't get an NHS appointment and can't wait, private dental care or a monthly dental plan is an option. Prices are set by the practice, not the NHS, so ask for the cost in writing before you agree to treatment.