College of general dentistry

Dentistry “Doesn't dentistry have its own College?” is a common, surprised reaction by colleagues in other healthcare professions, who simply assumed that dentistry must have a College. Then comes the question: “Is anything being done to create a College for dentistry?”. Yes, the Faculty of General Dental Practice (UK) (FGDP(UK)) has ‘grasped the nettle’. After 27 years of being hosted by the Royal College of Surgeons of England, FGDP(UK) is now preparing for its independence to become the foundation of a new College – the College of General Dentistry (CGDent). It is hoped that CGDent will become a multi-faculty organization, with faculties, in addition to the founding Faculty of Dental Practitioners, for both dental care professionals (DCPs) and members of the dental team wishing to set and promote standards in fields such as leadership, management, law and ethics and information technologies. A founding priority of CGDent, presently lead by a Board of Trustees, will be to pursue a Royal Charter. As a ‘new kid on the block’, CGDent aims to be inclusive and forward-looking, with appeal to an inclusive membership, ranging from students, through members of the dental team of all ages and in all sectors of general dentistry, to senior members of the profession. CGDent is not being modelled on existing Colleges: form will follow function.