A view from the Chair: welcoming new Council and committee members, updating guidance, confirming new exam sittings for the ORE

Welcoming new Council and committee members

The GDC’s Council and committees provide valuable scrutiny and independence. Most roles operate for fixed lengths of time, with people serving one or two terms and then moving on, which is a good thing as the GDC benefits from different perspectives and expertise over time.

At the end of this month, it will be a pleasure to welcome Reshard Auladin as a new lay member of Council, Jane Slatter as a new independent member of the Remuneration and Nomination (RemNom) Committee and Sarah Ramage as a registrant member of the Statutory Panellists Assurance Committee (SPC).

We will also say goodbye to Terry Babbs as a lay member of Council.  His role as Chair of the Finance and Performance Committee (FPC) will now be taken by Ilona Blue, and as Senior Independent Council Member by Simon Morrow.

You can read more about the changes on the website.

Asking to be removed from the registers: updated guidance

After a review and engagement with stakeholders, we have updated our guidance on voluntary removal applications where dental professionals are under investigation for fitness to practise concerns.

Dental professionals can ask to be removed from the register at any time and it is normally a straightforward administrative process. However, this is not always appropriate where dental professionals are under investigation for fitness to practise concerns. The updated guidance looks to improve transparency and consistency and ensure that decision making is proportionate, while also maintaining patient safety and public confidence.

Overseas Registration Examination (ORE) sittings until early 2025

Demand for the ORE continues to increase. So far this year, we've received almost 90% of the number of applications that we received in the whole of last year alone. It shows no signs of slowing down.

This week we announced an ORE Part 1 sitting in April 2025, with 600 places available, and three sittings of the ORE Part 2 from January to April 2025, with 144 places on each. These are under the current contract.

It is our intention to increase the capacity of the ORE further and, while the exam sittings for early 2025 will help, we have plans in place to increase the number of places even further during 2025 and beyond.

Opportunities to provide feedback

The GDC’s proposals to improve specialist list application routes aim to increase transparency, fairness, and consistency. The consultation closes soon and I would ask anyone with an interest to respond to the consultation before midnight on 12 September.

The GDC’s Practice Committees have a vital role in fitness to practise and it is important that their decision-making guidance is clear and transparent. As part of our work to reduce the negative impact of fitness to practise where we can, we have just released proposals to update guidance for Practice Committees. The consultation is open for 12 weeks – please review and respond by 26 November.

We consulted on scope of practice guidance at the end of last year and are preparing to publish the revised guidance soon. We will be engaging with stakeholders, especially professional associations, before the guidance is published, to build understanding of the guidance and what it means for dental professionals.