The General Dental Council (GDC) received 138 whistleblowing disclosures in the year to 31 March 2026 – a year-on-year increase of 74%.

A whistleblowing report published jointly by nine UK health and social care regulators shows the GDC received 59 more disclosures than in the previous year, with all 138 resulting in the opening of a fitness to practise (FTP) case.

The regulator said the rise could have been driven by a 26% increase in the overall number of concerns it received over the same period, as well as changes making it easier for informants to identify themselves as whistleblowers when raising a concern.

The figures also revealed:

  • Some 87 of the whistleblowing disclosures came from dental professionals, up from 51 in the previous year;
  • 29 came from non-registrants working in dentistry – seven more than the previous year.
  • A further 22 disclosures were made anonymously, which was more than three times the six recorded for the previous year;
  • Conduct concerns were raised in 92 of the 138 disclosures – a rise of 38 year-on-year.
  • Of the 138 FTP cases, 39 were closed at the assessment stage due to insufficient information to progress them in spite of efforts to obtain further details from the whistleblowers.
  • Of the 99 remaining cases, 82 are at the assessment stage and could still be referred to case examiners.
  • The other 17 were referred to case examiners, with seven progressing to a practice committee and ten awaiting consideration.

Potential outcomes of a case placed before a statutory practice committee include removal or suspension from the register, conditions imposed for a specified period, or the case being closed with no further action if a registrant’s fitness to practise is found not to be impaired.

In the report, the GDC said: 'We continue to receive a high proportion of disclosure for the size of the register. However, it is worth highlighting that most dentistry is provided in a primary care setting and outside the more robust clinical governance frameworks that characterise some other forms of healthcare. This may mean that alternative disclosure routes are not available in many dental settings, resulting in a larger proportion therefore being reported to the regulator.'

The joint report, published annually, highlights the nine regulators’ coordinated efforts to address the serious issues raised by whistleblowers.

The other eight regulators behind the report are: the General Chiropractic Council, the General Medical Council, the General Optical Council, the General Osteopathic Council, the General Pharmaceutical Council, the Health and Care Professions Council, the Nursing and Midwifery Council and Social Work England.