Key facts: Brighton
- NHS courses of treatment, Brighton and Hove, 2024/25
- 168,423
- Against pre-pandemic 2019/20
- -8.2% (England -8.8%)
- Adults seen in 24 months to March 2025
- 40.1% (England 39.8%)
- Child NHS access, year to March 2025
- 66.1% (England 56.9%)
- Practices with NHS activity, BN postcode area
- 114, median 7,311 UDAs
- Sussex: NHS dentists per 100,000 people
- 48.9 (England 42.1)
- Commissioner
- NHS Sussex ICB
2024/25 figures from NHS Business Services Authority dental statistics. Courses per 1,000 residents are calculated from the same tables; 36 towns and cities are ranked.
Brighton NHS dental activity in 2024/25
Practices in Brighton and Hove delivered 168,423 NHS courses of treatment in 2024/25. That is up 2.4% on 2023/24 but still 8.2% short of 2019/20 (England: 8.8% short). That is 593 courses per 1,000 residents on 2024 population estimates, 27th of the 36 English towns and cities we compared; Portsmouth ran at 482 and Southampton ran at 677.
Around Brighton, the change since 2019/20 was -19.0% in Portsmouth and -0.9% in Southampton.
The work leans complex: band 3 courses (crowns, bridges, dentures) made up 5.1% of the total against 3.7% for England, which means more laboratory cost per course for a buyer to read into margins. The share of courses for paying adults, 50.6%, is within a point of England's 50.7%.
How many Brighton patients see an NHS dentist
Over the two years to 31 March 2025, NHS dentists saw 95,036 Brighton and Hove adults: 40.1%, ahead of England by 0.3 points and 22nd among the 36 places we compared. The comparable figure was 32.9% for Portsmouth and 45.3% for Southampton.
Child access ran at 66.1%, or 30,795 children in a year, which is higher than England's figure by 9.2 points and places Brighton 11th of 36.
With access near the England figure, nothing local tilts the case either way; the practice's delivery against contract and its private book decide it.
Dentists in Sussex
Brighton draws on the Sussex workforce: 843 NHS dentists in 2024/25, against 1,006 five years earlier. At 48.9 per 100,000 residents the ICB sits above England's 42.1, and with 62 joiners and 77 leavers the year ended 15 down. For comparison, Hampshire and Isle of Wight had 45.7 and Hampshire and Isle of Wight had 45.7 per 100,000.
Where dentists are scarcer, lenders ask who will fill the chairs. Associate agreements and a realistic recruitment cost in the cash flow answer that question before it is asked.
Practices in the BN postcode area
114 practices with a postcode in the BN postcode area recorded NHS activity in 2024/25. The median practice delivered 7,311 UDAs, 31st of 36, against 7,082 in Portsmouth (PO) and 12,031 in Southampton (SO).
A median this small points to more mixed and private practices. Expect a lender to ask for private income history and patient plan numbers alongside the NHS contract.
What this means for a Brighton purchase
Most of a practice's price is goodwill, and lenders test it against figures like these for Brighton: contract delivery, patient mix and staffing. Our guide to buying a dental practice sets out the steps, and goodwill finance explains how that element is funded. Chairs and imaging usually suit equipment finance, and the practice purchase loan calculator shows repayments against profit.
Premises, regulation and security
Buying a dental freehold in England brings Stamp Duty Land Tax at non-residential rates, and a lender secures the loan with a legal charge registered at HM Land Registry. For leased premises, expect a lender to ask for the lease and to match the loan term to it.
Regulation runs on two tracks: the GDC registers the clinicians and the CQC registers the provider. A buyer in Brighton also needs Sussex to agree the contract transfer before the lender releases funds.
Lenders for Brighton dental practices
We hold no lender lists by town, and lenders for dental practices lend nationally rather than city by city. For a Brighton case we search the whole market. Fees depend on the lender, with nothing upfront.
Common questions
How many dental practices in Brighton do NHS work?
114 practices in the BN postcode area recorded NHS activity in 2024/25, delivering a median of 7,311 UDAs each (NHS Business Services Authority). Private-only practices are not counted.
What share of Brighton adults see an NHS dentist?
40.1% in the two years to March 2025 (England 39.8%), and 66.1% of children in one year (England 56.9%).
Who holds NHS dental contracts in Brighton?
NHS Sussex ICB commissions NHS dentistry for Brighton. The contract position has to be agreed with it as part of any purchase.
How many NHS dentists work in Sussex?
843 in 2024/25, or 48.9 per 100,000 people (England 42.1).
