Appointment Management & Cancellation Policy
At our practice, we are committed to providing high-quality dental care in a relaxed and efficient environment. To help us offer appointments fairly and minimise waiting times for all patients, we kindly ask everyone to follow our appointment and cancellation policy.
Managing Your Appointments
We aim to make booking and managing appointments as simple and convenient as possible. Patients can book, change, or reschedule appointments by calling our dedicated appointments team on 01707 334444 or by using the online booking form on our website:
Church Road Dental Practice
Our appointment system is designed to provide timely access to treatment while offering appointment times that work around your schedule.
Appointment Reminders
To help patients keep track of upcoming visits, we send reminders by email, text message, or post approximately 3 days before each appointment. Please ensure we always have your most up-to-date contact details.
If We Need to Change Your Appointment
We make every effort to keep appointments as scheduled and will only cancel or delay appointments in unavoidable circumstances.
If this happens, we will:
- Contact you as soon as possible to explain the reason for the change
- Offer you the earliest available alternative appointment
- Provide a priority appointment if you are unable to rebook immediately
Cancelling or Missing an Appointment
We kindly ask patients to provide at least 24 hours’ notice if they need to cancel or rearrange an appointment. This allows us to offer the appointment to another patient in need of care.
To cancel or change an appointment, please call: 01707 334444
Late cancellations and missed appointments can result in lost clinical time that could otherwise be used to treat other patients.
NHS Appointments
We do not charge NHS patients for missed appointments or cancellations made with less than 24 hours’ notice. However, repeated missed appointments may affect our ability to continue providing NHS treatment.
If more than two NHS appointments are missed or cancelled with less than 24 hours’ notice, we cannot guarantee completion of ongoing NHS treatment or future NHS care at the practice.
Private Appointments
Private appointments cancelled with less than 24 hours’ notice, or missed without notice, may incur a charge of £2 per minute of the scheduled appointment time.
Hygienist appointments carry a fixed missed appointment fee of £35.
Please note that deposits are required when booking private appointments, particularly for longer appointments and new patient visits. Deposits are non-refundable if insufficient notice is given.
We understand that emergencies and illness can sometimes make cancellations unavoidable, and all circumstances will always be considered fairly and compassionately.
Following a missed appointment, we may contact patients to discuss the reason for non-attendance and explain any applicable fees or decisions regarding future care.
Appeals or Questions
Any concerns or appeals regarding missed appointment decisions should be made in writing to the Practice Manager, Katie Lockyear.
