Christmas Shutdown

The Practice will close at 12 noon on Christmas Eve and open again on Friday 2^nd January, to give all our staff and clinicians a well-earned rest! Our ‘Out-of-hours’ supplier 24/7 Dentistry, will be available throughout the time we are closed, and have clinics in Southampton and Poole. If you have a dental emergency during the Christmas period, please call 03301 759 995. (This number will also be on our answer machine). Plan patients can re-claim some costs through their Borough Plan Emergency Insurance.

The Borough Dental Practice is Recruiting!

In the Spring, Liv (Jenny and Luke’s daughter and our trainee dental nurse) is moving on from The Borough Dental Practice as she pursues a career in church work. Tash is also excitingly expecting her 2^nd child, and so the Practice will therefore be recruiting more nursing staff.

We are ideally looking for a qualified dental nurse, so if any patients know of a current dental nurse who may be interested in joining the team, please do direct them to the job link here

However, we are also open to supporting someone looking for a new career! We have trained a number of dental nurses, sponsoring study time and course costs, graduating with a Level 3 Diploma in Dental Nursing.

Jordan Riley, one of our valued dental nurses, started with us as a Trainee Dental Nurse in March 2021. She says:-

I was previously working in hospital in general nursing. I was first attracted by the more sociable hours (with no evening or weekend work!), but quickly came to appreciate working in a smaller, friendly and stable team and enjoy the varied work in surgery and reception. The team were so supportive throughout  my training, with working hours set aside for studying and course-work and help if I ever needed it. I also appreciated doing an online course rather than having to physically go into College. I’m so pleased with the career change I made and really enjoy Dental Nursing and working at The Borough Practice.”

If you are interested in exploring becoming a Dental Nurse with our Practice, please email our Practice Manager, Laura Chatwin, to laura@nulltheboroughdentalpractice.co.uk

Richard Retirement honoured Nepalese Style!

Masterminded by our Head Dental Nurse, Arpana, the Borough Team gave Richard Stephenson a unique surprise send-off at his Staff Retirement Party, performing a traditional Nepalese dance!

Having surreptitiously been practicing for weeks at lunchtimes and after work, the Practice ladies performed a dance called ‘Darpan Chhaya’ which, amongst other things recognises the lasting impact of love and friendship amidst loss – appropriate as Richard leaves the Practice to enjoy a well-deserved retirement. There was also a bonus dance appearance from special guest, Charlie Killick!

Richard works his last morning on Christmas Eve and there is a Retirement Book on reception should any patients like to call in to put a message for his book before then. Alternatively, email Reception!

Becky is starting on 5th January!

Richard’s successor, Becky Jones, who will be taking on Richard’s patient list, is excited about joining the Practice and starts work on the 5^th January!  Read more about Becky here!

Price Review

As of 1st January, our prices will increase by, on average, 3.8% in line with UK inflation over the last 12 months.

Every year, we benchmark our prices against ten other comparable private dental practices in the region to ensure we are offering excellent value.

Musana Pop-Up Shop!

The annual Musana Pop-up Shop is available at reception until 12 on Christmas Eve, selling hand-made bags, jewelry and other items – all made in one of Musana’s Women’s Empowerment Centres in Uganda. More info can be found at www.musana.org 

We would like to wish all our patients and their families a very Merry Christmas and every blessing for 2026!

The post Christmas 2025 appeared first on The Borough Dental Practice, Downton, Wiltshire.

Richard and Mandy

Richard Retiring at Christmas

We are both excited for him and sad for us that our long-term Dentist, Richard Stephenson, is retiring from dentistry this Christmas. With a big birthday this year, and his wife Mandy retiring at Christmas too, Richard felt that the end of 2025 would be the right time to hang up his loupes. We will miss him so much!

We are delighted though to announce the appointment of highly-respected dentist, Rebecca Jones, who joins the Practice in January to look after Richard’s patients. Read more about Becky below.

Richard’s reflections

“It is with great sadness that I am ending my career in dentistry after 41 years of helping people with their dental health. Spending the last eleven of those years at the Borough Dental practice has been a wonderful finale.”

Richard (centre) at Dental School

“Starting out in the 1980s in Bristol, when a large proportion of the population had no teeth at all, I eventually settled in the New Forest. Spending thirty years working in the NHS, I have witnessed a great many improvements in dental care.”

 “The Borough Dental Practice has embraced those new innovations, techniques and materials to enable the provision of the very best patient care. To see the Practice evolve from one consulting room in 2014 to the four consulting rooms of today has been wonderful to be a part of. I’ve been honoured to work with so many talented colleagues.”

 “I will miss all my lovely patients and work colleagues, of course, and wish them well in the future. I’ll be returning to The Borough as a patient and will hopefully meet many familiar faces in the waiting room.”

 Jenny Wordley, owner of the Practice, said:-

“I was so privileged to have Richard as my boss for a decade in Fordingbridge. He is the loveliest man and a wonderful dentist. So when I started my own Practice and we grew to the stage that we could take on another dentist, Richard was always going to be my first choice to ask. I am so glad he decided to join us at The Borough Dental Practice. We have had a lot of fun over the years and I will miss him enormously.”  

We are also slightly in awe of Richard’s athleticism! Ever since he joined, he has cycled the 30 miles or so a day to and from work to his home near Ringwood in literally all weathers, with not even freezing cold or torrential rain deterring him. But as Richard explains, it has been a great joy to him.

 “Working in Downton I’ve been able to cycle to work from near Ringwood through the beautiful New Forest and witness the changing seasons pass each year. Amazingly, I’ve logged over 33,000 miles…and worn out a few tyres!”

 “Mandy are I are looking forward to having more time for family and exploring the countryside on foot and by bicycle.”

I am sure all our patients will join us in wishing Richard every happiness for the future.

We have a retirement book on reception for anyone who would like to write Richard a message, or email the Practice and we will insert it!

Welcome Becky!

We are delighted that highly regarded Dorset Dentist, Rebecca Jones, is joining The Borough Dental Practice in January 2026!

Becky will be taking on most of Richard’s patients, as well as having some capacity for new patients too.

Becky qualified from Cardiff University in 2003, receiving the year group prize for clinical excellence. Becky has since continued to develop her skills and experience by enrolling in some of the most prestigious and demanding post-graduate studies. In 2009, Becky completed her MJDF examination and in doing so gained membership of the Royal College of Surgeons. She then went on to study at the renowned Eastman Dental Institute in London where she obtained a Post Graduate Certificate in Restorative Dentistry. Despite all these qualifications though, Becky is best known for her lovely, gentle manner – one Richard is confident his patients will appreciate:-

“I am thrilled that Becky is joining the Practice. She and I have such a similar philosophy towards patient care and I know that she will provide an exemplary service to my former patients. Indeed, Becky was kind enough to provide some locum cover for me when I was ill a few years ago, and she was so popular with patients and staff that I think Jenny and Luke have been looking for an opportunity to offer her a permanent role ever since!”

Richard and Becky at a recent Borough team away day!

Indeed, when Richard gave us the nod that he was planning to retire, Becky was our absolute first choice to take on Richard’s patients. And we are so glad that she has chosen to join us. Becky added:- “I am delighted to be joining The Borough Dental Practice. I have been very happy in my current practice with lovely colleagues and a group of patients who I will miss very much. However, the opportunity to work at such a state-of-the-art, family-owned Practice with the reputation Jenny and her team enjoy for providing outstanding patient care was just one I had to take. I look forward to meeting all my new patients and I can’t wait to get started. I’m only sad I’m not going to get to work with Richard!”

Becky’s appointment book is now open for new patients. Richard’s patients (and appointments) will be transferred automatically. If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to contact the practice on 01725 510303.

Mouth Cancer Awareness Month

This November, The Borough Dental Practice will be promoting ‘Mouth Cancer Awareness Month’. Mouth Cancer is an increasingly prevalent and very serious cancer. Last year, there were 10,825 new cases in the UK alone – a 3-fold increase over the last 40 years – with tragically ten people dying every day due to mouth cancer. It is now the 8^th most common cancer with 78% of new cases in the ‘over 55 year old’ category.

If caught early, there is a five-year survival rate of 80%, which is one of the reasons why the dentists at The Borough always thoroughly check your mouth for signs of oral cancer during every examination. We are also keen to raise mouth cancer awareness and reducing risk factors amongst our patients and their families. So during November, we will be promoting mouth cancer awareness through leaflets in our waiting room and talking to patients about how to self-check. If you are not visiting the Practice during November, but would like to know about risk factors, signs and symptoms and how to self-check, please visit https://www.mouthcancerfoundation.org/ .

If you are ever anxious about anything unusual that appears in your mouth, such as a non-healing ulcer or a red and white patch, please ring the practice to book an appointment.

Focus on Africa

The Borough Dental Practice were delighted in the summer to sponsor Richard Budworth’s daughter Emilia to take part in a school-building project in rural Tanzania. She writes:-

‘The whole experience was fantastic. The children and local community were wonderful to spend time with. The work was hard and hot, but we managed to get a lot done. I am still having dreams about making cement! Nevertheless, I had the most amazing time, made lifelong friends and it helped me realise humanitarian work is a career I would like to follow.’ 

Musana

The Borough Dental Practice owner, Jenny Wordley, is a trustee of Musana UK – a partner Organisation of Musana – one of the fastest growing Community Development Organisations in Africa. Turning the traditional Western Aid model on its head, Musana improves the lives and restores the dignity of whole communities in Uganda by helping them take responsibility for their own futures through enterprise and entrepreneurism. Ugandan-led, Musana’s numerous enterprises are now some of the fastest-growing and most respected across Uganda, employing nearly 1,000 people and generating substantial locally-generated profits which then fund disadvantaged people from nearby communities to access health and education services.

On November 11^th, Musana’s Founders, Haril and Andrea Kazindra will be speaking at a reception in the House of Commons, sharing how locally-led, income-generating solutions are transforming lives and creating lasting, generational impact. If you are interested in hearing more about this extraordinary organisation and its work at this prestigious venue in London, please contact gemmasmith@nullmusana.org

For more information about Musana’s work, please visit https://musana.org

Liv Wordley runs New Forest half-marathon for Musana!

On Sunday 14^th September, Borough Dental Nurse, Liv Wordley and her friend Sophie ran the New Forest half marathon in aid of Musana, achieving Liv’s pre-race goal of ‘running’ all the way! So far, they have raised nearly 80% of their £800 target! If you would like to support her efforts, please visit their fundraising page found at:- https://www.gofundme.com/f/half-marathon-for-musana-sophie-and-liv

Musana Pop-Up Shop for Christmas

The Musana Pop-up Shop will once again be making an appearance at the Practice in November and December, selling incredible hand-made bags and other products made by women at one of Musana’s Women Empowerment Centres. Please bring cash, including change!

And Finally!

To Richard and Mandy! We raise you a glass and wish you every happiness in your retirement!

The post Autumn 2025 appeared first on The Borough Dental Practice, Downton, Wiltshire.

We are delighted that highly regarded Dorset Dentist, Rebecca Jones, joined The Borough Dental Practice in January 2026!

Becky has taken over from long-time Borough dentist, Richard Stephenson, who retired at Christmas 2025.

Richard worked in the area for more than 30 years, and was a dentist at The Borough Dental Practice for more than a decade. Having reached 60, Richard decided that the time was right to retire. He will be missed enormously by staff and patients alike.

Richard said:- “It was such a privilege to serve my patients over many years, many of whom followed me when I moved to The Borough Dental Practice. The last ten years at The Borough have been the happiest of my career, working with a superb team of clinicians and support staff in such a beautiful and ethically-run Practice. I have become extremely fond of my patients and so am thrilled that Becky has joined the Practice to look after them. She and I have such a similar philosophy towards patient care and I know that she will provide an exemplary service to patients. Indeed, Becky was kind enough to provide some locum cover for me when I was ill a few years ago, and she was so popular with patients and staff that I think Jenny and Luke have been looking for an opportunity to offer her a permanent role ever since!”

Indeed, with Richard’s retirement at the end of 2025, Becky was the absolute natural choice to take on his patients. She also has a small amount of capacity to take on new patients to the Practice.

Becky added:- “I am delighted to have joined The Borough Dental Practice. I was very happy in my former practice with lovely colleagues and a group of patients who I will miss very much. However, the opportunity to work at such a state-of-the-art, family-owned Practice with the reputation Jenny and her team enjoy for providing outstanding patient care was just one I had to take. My first couple of months at The Borough have not disappointed. It is an exceptional Practice with an amazing team who have helped me settle in so quickly. My new patients are all lovely and it has also been wonderful to welcome a few of my old patients too who have kindly followed me!”

See our staff team to read more about Becky.

Becky’s appointment book is open for new patients. Please ring the Practice on 01725 510303 to book your first appointment.

The post Dentist Rebecca Jones joins The Borough Dental Practice as Richard Stephenson retires! appeared first on The Borough Dental Practice, Downton, Wiltshire.

Goodbye Charlie 

At a wonderful garden party at the end of June, more than 150 patients, friends and colleagues were able to celebrate Charlie Killick’s retirement from general practice.

With splendid musical accompaniment from The Salisbury Big Band, and delicious home-made scones, the whole occasion was a fitting tribute to a remarkable career.

Sadly, arthritis in his thumb joint has brought about Charlie’s retirement from general practice a little sooner than he had planned. However, guests were able to reflect on a brilliant career. Beginning his dental journey in the Royal Navy, Charlie then studied and taught at Guy’s Hospital before moving to The Chequers Dental Practice in Salisbury in 2000. Whilst practicing, Charlie dedicated himself to further study, achieving a rare double-specialism in Endodontics and Prosthodontics. As a result, more than a hundred dentists from across the region referred complex cases to Charlie’s care over the decades.

In 2019, Charlie moved to The Borough Dental Practice in Downton where he has practiced for the last six years – years he declared to be among the happiest of his career.

Charlie said:- “Despite the challenges of Covid shortly after my arrival, my time at The Borough Dental Practice has been wonderful. It has been a pleasure to work with such a dedicated team of brilliant practitioners and support staff and in a really first class and beautiful clinical environment. I would like to thank Jenny and her team for their friendship over the years and also working so hard to give me such a lovely send-off last weekend.”

“Finally, I would like to thank all my loyal patients, many of whom have followed me around the Salisbury area. It has been my pleasure and privilege to care for you over the years. I am sorry my thumb has necessitated my early retirement but I am delighted that you are in safe hands and thoroughly recommend Richard Budworth with whom my patients have been placed.”

Charlie spent the first few days of retirement on his sailing boat and has also bought a campervan, with potentially a new puppy arriving at some point too! We wish Charlie and his partner Kate every happiness for the future.

Sophie joins The Borough as Care Coordinator

At the Practice, we are constantly trying to improve the service we offer to our patients and address areas in which we think we could do better! Top of the list was how quickly we were able to answer the telephone, and avoid voicemail ping-pong!

So earlier this year, we recruited a brilliant new Care Coordinator, Sophie Albery, whose main responsibility is to answer the telephone. If you have rung the Practice since Easter, it is likely that Sophie has answered your call!

Sophie now answers the vast majority of calls to the Practice and is an expert at organising the appointment book to help patients get timely care at their convenience. Please don’t hesitate to call Sophie if there is anything she can do to help. She is very friendly and approachable. We are also now able to take calls at lunchtime, except on a Wednesday.

We have also invested in a state-of-the-art new phone system with call queuing, meaning patients should always be able to get through to us, even if it takes a minute or two before we can answer. You can still leave a voicemail if you prefer! Please let us know how you find our new system by emailing laura@nulltheboroughdentalpractice.co.uk.

Out-of-Hours Care

After nearly 500 weekends on-call since she opened the Practice in 2013, Jenny has finally decided it is time to get her weekends back, and be able to travel more than 2 hours’ drive away from home without having to plan cover six months in advance! So since January, 2025, The Borough Dental Practice has been partnering with a specialist 24/7 dental company, who provide emergency dental care day and night.

Jenny said:- We have worked really hard for over a decade to provide out-of-hours emergency care to our patients. However, emergency dentistry has changed over the years with the growth of specialist emergency providers. This has led to nearly all private practices now partnering with them to provide emergency care. ‘The 247 dentist’, with clinics in Southampton and Poole, provide excellent 24-hour care which is actually more access than we were ever able to offer. It means my own team can have a full and well-deserved weekend off to ensure they are fresh and ready to provide our outstanding service during the week. We have emergency slots available every weekday, with additional slots on a Monday for anyone who has developed a problem over the weekend. If a dental problem or pain cannot wait until Monday, then simply ring ‘the 247 dentist’ (number on our website and answerphone) and they will normally be able to offer you an appointment within just a couple of hours.”

Shona off on Aussie adventures!

We were sad but also excited for Shona to wave her on her way to Australia!

Born and bred in the Downton area, Shona joined the Practice in 2023 as a dental nurse.

However, while fond of Downton, Shona always harboured a dream of travelling and, with our encouragement, took the plunge to head down-under at Easter time.

It has been wonderful to see her photos come through as she explores this amazing country and culture!

We wish Shona all the very best for the future.

Welcome to Alex!

We are delighted to introduce Alex, our new visiting endodontist! Originally from Spain, Alex has been living and practicing in the Winchester area for the last decade or so, after moving here from Edinburgh where she met and married her husband. Alex has been a general practitioner for more than 20 years, during which time she has also undertaken extensive post-graduate training, including completing a Diploma in Endodontics at the prestigious Eastman Dental Institute in London. She now works predominantly in endodontics, her area of special interest, and will be offering referral services to both our own patients and to local practices too.

Welcome Gabby too!

Gabby Wilson joined us in April as our new Dental Nurse/Receptionist to replace Shona. Gabby is a super-experienced dental nurse, having worked in private Practice in Romsey and Bournemouth. Gabby is already a popular and invaluable member of The Borough team. We feel very blessed that she has joined our Practice family!

And welcome back Tash!

It has been lovely to welcome Tash back to the Practice after maternity leave. And she’s back with her normal sense of fun and adventure!

Tash recently celebrated a special birthday and, shortly after being pictured with little Rosie and partner Charlie, took to the skies on this fabulous Tiger Moth, for a crazy wing-walking experience!

 Richard settling in well!  

As patients will recall from our building works, 2024 was a busy year preparing for the arrival of Richard Budworth. We are thrilled to report that Richard started with us full-time in January and, as expected, has quickly proven to be a brilliant addition to the team. In building a 4th surgery and welcoming Richard to the Practice, we have once again been able to open our practice to new patients and we have been delighted to welcome more than 800 patients to his book.

Richard said:- “I cannot believe it is just six months since I started at The Borough Dental Practice! It has been an absolute joy. My brand new surgery is fantastic, packed full of the latest equipment to enable me to provide the best service possible to my patients, and in a beautifully calm and relaxed environment. My patients are loving being able to watch nature programmes on the overhead screen whilst receiving longer treatments! The team are fantastic and the whole practice is set up to provide a high quality, friendly and ethical dental service. It has been lovely to welcome new and familiar patients to the Practice. I couldn’t be happier with the move I have made!”   

Indeed, with the transfer of Charlie’s patients to Richard, he may well need to close his book later in the year to new patients, so if you have friends or family who are interested in joining the Practice and Richard’s book in particular, please do suggest that they join sooner rather than later.

Happy Summer time!

We hope you are enjoying your Summer and this lovely weather. Here is some of our team at the Salisbury Races in June during a team day-out in the sunshine!

The post Summer 2025 appeared first on The Borough Dental Practice, Downton, Wiltshire.

We hope you are well.

Jenny standing atop the Practice under the scaffold ‘tin roof’ before work!

Building Work Completed

As patients who have visited us over the last six months will know, it has been a very busy and often, noisy time at the Practice! However, we are thrilled that the scaffolding has finally come down and, but for a few finishing touches of painting, the building work is now finished.

With an absolutely beautiful new state-of-the-art fourth surgery, a new waiting room and 2^nd central decontamination room upstairs, and an extended waiting room downstairs, we couldn’t be happier with our renovations.

Our new 4th surgery

Our new upstairs waiting room

Our new upstairs decontamination room

Our extended downstairs waiting room

We are biased, of course, but we are confident our Practice must be one of the best equipped and spacious in the UK offering an outstanding clinical environment for patients and staff.

Our new dentist, Richard Budworth

Thank you so much for your patience while the building work has been undertaken. This is the last expansion we intend at the Practice, so it will now return to being an oasis of peace and tranquillity!

Richard Budworth has Started!

Richard has completed his first few days at The Borough. A highly respected and experienced local dentist who built up a leading private practice at Stockbridge, Richard is joining the Practice full-time from January. Richard adds:-

“I am so delighted to be moving to The Borough to work alongside such a lovely and experienced team of clinicians and support staff. My new surgery is fantastic and so well-equipped with the latest technology to help me provide great dental care to my patients. It is the little touches, like the screen on the ceiling for patients to watch nature programmes during longer treatments, that really enhances the patient experience. I couldn’t be happier!”

The Downton Community Choir in action!

Our 10th Anniversary Party!

In July 2024, The Borough Dental Practice celebrated its 10^th anniversary with a tea party for nearly 200 patients and guests. The weather was wet, so the planned garden party moved indoors to the Memorial Hall. The beautiful cream teas, accompanied by fantastic entertainment from both The Downton Band and The Downton Community Choir, more than made up for the rainy weather outside! Over £300 was raised on the day for the Downton Band.

The celebration marked an incredible ten years at the Practice. We have just printed a newsletter describing a decade of development, which also includes a £30 credit for New Patients joining the Practice to see Richard Budworth. Click here or on the newsletter to read more!

‘Introduce a Friend’ Voucher

In just over a decade, The Borough Dental Practice has grown from zero patients to being one of the leading private practices in the region with over 4,000 patients. This has largely been due to ‘word of mouth’ recommendations, which is always the most heartening way to grow, and for which we thank all our patients. As we build up Richard’s book, we are delighted to offer an ‘Introduce a Friend’ voucher. Please click here to print off the voucher to give to a friend or family member who doesn’t yet belong to the Practice. It will give them £15 towards future treatment after their New Patient Examination with Richard Budworth (£95 including x-rays), and we will credit £15 to your account for future care too as a thank-you!

Bookings must be made by 12 noon on 24^th December, and the New Patient Examination completed before Easter, 2025. Paper vouchers are also available in the dental practice.

Daily Hygiene Care and welcome Anna

We are delighted that, with the expansion to a 4^th surgery, we are now able to offer hygiene care every day from Monday to Friday! Kerrie is stepping up to four days a week, and we are thrilled to have welcomed a new Dental Therapist and Hygienist, Anna Smith, to the Practice. Anna lives in Southampton but hails from the North-East and is working with us on Thursdays. Along with a gentle touch and warm personality, Anna brings a wealth of skills as both a hygienist and trained dental therapist. As well as hygiene care, a Dental Therapist is able to provide simple fillings, fissure sealants and other treatments, particularly for children. Welcome Anna!

We are now an accredited EMS Air Flow Provider

In the last blog, we announced that we had recently purchased a state-of-the-art Swiss-made piece of technology called AIRFLOW for hygiene appointments. This system uses air and body-temperature warm water to remove scale from tooth/gum margins, rather than the traditional cold-water with vibrating metal scaler. As well as disrupting the biofilm (reducing the bad bacteria) it is also much more comfortable during treatment, especially for those with sensitive teeth.

Rather than only offering the AIRFLOW treatment as an expensive premium service as many practices do, we decided as a trial to incorporate use of the EMS into regular standard hygiene treatments. This has received a huge ‘thumbs-up’ from our patients, one saying:- ‘For decades I’ve dreaded hygiene appointments due to my sensitive gums. With the new machine, it is almost a pleasant experience!’

Thanks to positive patient feedback, despite the purchase cost (roughly the cost of a new car!) and the ongoing consumables costs, we have decided to offer it as part of a standard hygiene treatment going forwards.

Musana Pop-Up Shop for Christmas

In Summer 2023, Jenny and her family had the privilege of visiting an extraordinary organisation in Uganda called Musana. Musana is a Community Development Organisation who use seed-funding from the West to build high quality schools, hospitals, dental clinics and other community enterprises that are 100% self-sustaining once established and run entirely by Ugandans. In fact, Musana uses profits generated locally (nearly US$1/2 million in the last twelve months) to help support thousands of families who can’t afford education or medical care. Musana also runs Women’s Empowerment Centres to teach and equip particularly young single mothers with a skill with which they can support their families.

The Pop-Up Shop at the Practice

The Women’s Empowerment Centre in Uganda

This Christmas, we are delighted to be hosting a pop-up shop full of wonderful gift items made in the Women’s Empowerment Centre in Iganga (and some wooden Christmas decorations donated by a local artist), with all proceeds going to Musana. Please feel free to come early to your appointment or just call in. Please bring cash, including change, with you, as the shop is on a self-serve honesty box system!

Jenny has recently become a trustee of the newly formed Musana UK charity and we are hoping over the next few years to bring you more news about their work. In the meantime, please visit www.musana.org for more information.

Newest addition to the Team!

And finally, the most exciting part of the blog!

We are delighted to introduce the newest member of The Borough family, Rosalie Mia Lane (Rosie), who was born to our dental nurse, Tash, and her partner Charlie on Thursday 8^th August weighing in at 7lb 3oz.

We have had several lovely lunchtimes sharing cuddles and we look forward to welcoming Tash back in 2025!

Lover Baby Bank

Continuing the baby theme, we would like to give a ‘shout out’ to an amazing local organisation who helped a friend of ours recently in a crisis. Run entirely by volunteers, they collect good quality, pre-loved baby and infant items and, after thorough cleaning and safety checks, distribute them to families in need across Salisbury, Downton, Fordingbridge and surrounding villages. Visit www.loverbabybank.co.uk to find out more!

Thank you again for all your understanding and patience with our recent building project. We hope you enjoy our new facilities!

The post November 2024 appeared first on The Borough Dental Practice, Downton, Wiltshire.

Welcome to Richard!

Our first exciting news is that highly-regarded local dentist, Richard Budworth, is joining The Borough Team later this year. We are delighted to have such a brilliant new addition to the team, and so be able to open our Practice once more to new patients.

After graduating from Birmingham University in 1998, Richard served as a military dentist for seven years, before working at The Barn Dental Practice in Odstock. From there, he started The River Dental Practice in Stockbridge in 2008 – an award winning fully private practice that he built to be one of the leading practices in Hampshire. Having recently sold his practice, and living locally to Downton, Richard is thrilled to be joining The Borough team for this next stage of his career. You can read more about Richard on our website.

Hygiene Capacity increasing

In addition, we will shortly be recruiting a new hygienist and significantly increasing our hygiene capacity at the Practice. We look forward to introducing new members of the team in the next blog!

Building Plans

To accommodate Richard’s arrival and provide greater hygiene capacity, we will shortly be embarking on a final expansion of the dental practice with a fourth surgery room. We will be building a 1^st floor extension to accommodate a 2nd state-of-the art decontamination room, as well as a small two-storey extension to enlarge the waiting room downstairs and create a new seating area upstairs too. Inevitably, there will be some temporary disruption and building noise as this work is completed over the summer months, as well as scaffolding over much of the building. We will, of course, make every effort to keep disruption and noise to a minimum. Thank you in advance for your understanding and patience.

Job Opportunities

We will also be looking for a new dental nurse and a new receptionist to join our team. If you know of anyone who might be interested, please contact our Practice Manager, Laura, here for more details.

New Technology

As part of our expansion, we are investing over £100,000 in the latest dental technology to improve the patient experience and the services we offer. This includes a new state-of-the-art scanner, which will enable us to remove the need to take ‘impressions’ for many treatments, including some crowns, some dentures, mouthguards and retainers. Instead of impressions, a non-invasive digital scan of the mouth is taken using a small intra-oral camera. This creates an incredibly accurate digital model of the mouth, which can then be sent over the internet to dental laboratories instantly, rather than taking a physical mould with impression material to be collected by vehicle or sent through the post!

We have also invested in an innovative new technology called Air-flow for hygiene care. This uses air technology and warm water, rather than the traditional ultra-sonic scaler with cold water that can cause discomfort during hygiene treatments, particularly for patients with sensitive teeth. It is particularly good for removing staining pain-free. We plan to give every patient the opportunity to receive a hygiene treatment using this new device during upcoming appointments with the hygienist.

Invisalign Orthodontics

From this Autumn, we will be offering in-house clear aligner orthodontics, using the most advanced and popular clear aligner system in the world, Invisalign. Rather than traditional fixed brackets and metal wires, Invisalign uses a series of clear, thin aligners to steadily move teeth into the desired positions. More than 15 million patients have benefitted from Invisalign over the last 25 years, during which time the Invisalign system has become one of the most established and recognised brands in orthodontics.

Our new dentist, Richard Budworth, has been providing Invisalign orthodontics for many years, helping hundreds of his patients to achieve a straighter and more confident smile. He will be offering a free promotional initial assessment clinic for patients across the Practice interested in Invisalign on Friday 4^th October (limited spaces available). Please contact reception here to register your interest and book an appointment.

Invitation to our 10-Year Celebration Tea Party!

We would like to cordially invite all our patients to a Garden Tea Party on Sunday 7^th July, 2024 between 2pm and 4pm. Tea and scones will be served in the Dental Practice garden, or Downton Memorial Hall if the weather is unsettled. We hope to have some musical accompaniment from the Downton Community Choir. There will also be the opportunity to donate to local charities if you wish (see below).

Please RSVP here by 21^st June if you would like to come so we know how many scones to make! (+ any dietary requirements)

The Borough Dental Practice sponsors The River Festival!

As many of you will know, the annual Cuckoo Fayre was sadly cancelled this year. As well as a wonderful village event, The Cuckoo Fayre has always provided a crucial fundraising opportunity for a number of wonderful village organisations to raise vital funds for their activities.

Community leaders in the village have therefore devised a Downton River Festival for 2024, to provide a platform for those important village organisations to be able to publicise replacement fundraising activities and events to replace the Cuckoo Fayre shortfall.

As part of our 10^th anniversary celebrations, we have decided to match-fund up to £1,000 each to ten Downton organisations who normally rely on fundraising at the Cuckoo Fayre to encourage their alternative fundraising activities.

There is an upcoming meeting on 21st May (see here for details) for these Downton organisations and anyone who would like to support these important organisations with an event this summer. We hope to publish the ‘Downton Riverfest’ events calendar in a future blog!

Thank you for all your support over the last ten years, and for your patience and understanding as we complete one last expansion at the Practice this Summer!

The post May 2024 appeared first on The Borough Dental Practice, Downton, Wiltshire.

Welcome Shona!

We are delighted to welcome our latest addition to the Borough team. Shona Colson was born and bred in Morgan’s Vale and joins us as a dental nurse, having worked and trained in Salisbury. She is absolutely lovely and is settling into the team brilliantly!

We also look forward to welcoming Jordan back in the New Year after her maternity leave caring for the gorgeous Freya. We are so blessed to have such a fantastic dental nurse and reception team. Planning picture

Christmas Shutdown and Emergency Cover

As is our custom, we have our annual Practice shutdown over the Christmas and New Year period, to give all our staff a well-earned rest. The Practice will be closed from 12.30pm on Friday 22^nd December until the 2^nd of January at 9am.

We will be offering an emergency service every day over this period. If you have pain, swelling or a dental emergency that cannot wait until we re-open, please call the Practice telephone number and follow the instructions on the answer machine message. We will only be able to see emergency patients (if required) the same day if they call between 9am and 11am. Telephone advice will be provided between 9am and 5pm.

Please note a call-out charge of £210 + treatment costs will apply.

Plans for 2024!

It may not have escaped your notice that we are extraordinarily busy at the Practice. We apologise that as a result we are currently often booking further ahead than we would like, especially for hygienist appointments. We are trying to resolve this situation and are contemplating a building project to accommodate another surgery room in the practice. This would help us to boost capacity to shorten waiting times and enable us to continue to welcome new patients. However, this will be subject to planning permission and may take some time, as well as likely cause some temporary disruption. Thank you for your patience and understanding and, of course, for your ‘word of mouth’ recommendations that have helped present this exciting challenge!

Fee Review

We have made a fee increase from January 2024 in light of inflation and increased costs since the last price review in September, 2022. These can be found on the Prices page of this website. With the increase in inflation in recent years, price reviews will now take place annually each January.

2023 prices quoted in existing treatment plans will be honoured until the 31^st March, 2024. Plan patients will have received a separate email communication or letter in November to confirm this increase. Please contact reception if you have not received this.

Downton Link

Downton Link are a wonderful local volunteer group who help transport people to medical and dental appointments, shopping etc. As a practice, we are very grateful to Downton Link and all their volunteers who have helped bring patients to the Practice. They also offer a befriending service to people needing company. Downton Link is currently seeking a new Link Coordinator, as well as drivers to support the service. If you can spare a few hours, please do get in touch with them. Click on the picture or call 01725 513807 for more information.

Happy Christmas – our 10^th at The Borough Dental Practice!

As you may know, we recently marked our 10^th anniversary at The Borough Dental Practice! We will be announcing some celebratory events and initiatives in the New Year, but instead of our normal jokey Christmas staff photo, we thought we would include one of the whole team on our recent Christmas and 10^th anniversary celebration dinner.

We hope you have a wonderful Christmas and wish you every blessing for 2024!

The post December 2023 appeared first on The Borough Dental Practice, Downton, Wiltshire.

The Borough Dental Practice is 10 years old!

The Borough Dental Practice opened officially 10 years ago on 18^th November 2013. As I look back over the past decade it seems that so much has happened since we opened up with just one surgery room and 4 members of the dental team to now a three surgery practice with four dentists, an implantologist, a hygienist, five nurses and a practice manager.

We have so much to be grateful for and reflecting on the past 10 years we have always endeavoured to make the practice a welcoming and safe place where the best possible care is given by a dedicated team of highly skilled professionals who genuinely care.

The last 10 years have held some great moments as well as some challenges include navigating through building projects, integrating new team members, coming to grips with state of the art equipment, and, of course, Covid-19, along with various babies and weddings along the way.

As we look forward to, God willing, the next 10 years we have more plans and adventures afoot and look forward to sharing them with you all. We also hope to hold a celebratory event later in 2024 when the weather improves so please watch this spot.

In the meantime, we just wanted to thank you for your support over the years. We simply wouldn’t be here without you.

Thank you.

The post The Practice is 10 years old! appeared first on The Borough Dental Practice, Downton, Wiltshire.

Double Congratulations For Jordan!

Huge congratulations to Jordan who has just graduated as a fully qualified dental nurse – and become a Mum! Jordan joined the practice on a nurse apprenticeship in Spring 2021. Arriving whilst we were still under COVID restrictions, it has not been the easiest time to train and recent months has seen the double challenge of taking her final assessments whilst also expecting her first baby! We’re delighted to announce she passed with flying colours just before her maternity leave started.

A few weeks later, the beautiful Freya was born on 28^th March weighing 8lb 1oz. We look forward to welcoming Jordan back later in the year.

Welcome to Michelle

We are delighted to welcome Michelle to the practice to cover Jordan’s maternity leave. Michelle is a very experienced dental nurse, having worked in both general dentistry and in a highly regarded specialist periodontal clinic. She is settling in brilliantly and looks forward to meeting our patients in due course.

Goodbye Ian 

We are very sad to say goodbye to our hygienist, Ian Jones. Ian joined us in 2018. With his excellent hygiene skills coupled with a great sense of humour, Ian has been a popular team member with staff and patients. We wish him all the best in his new endeavours.

Our other hygienist, Kerrie Chandler, is taking over Ian’s hours and is now offering hygiene services at the Practice on a Monday, Wednesday and Friday. Kerrie is an exceptional practitioner and is now delivering all our regular hygiene care, which offers brilliant continuity for our patients.

Dental plans are the cheapest and best way to receive dental care at The Borough Dental Practice. Not only are the collective cost of routine examinations, x-rays and hygiene appointments are at least £10 a year cheaper than ‘Paying as you go’, but patients also receive 10% discount off treatments*, as well as dental emergency insurance at home and abroad. It is also the consensus of many dentists, including us, that plan patients tend to enjoy better oral health overall, partly as there is not the temptation to delay routine preventive care due to cost. Please speak to your dentist or our receptionist for more information.

*except for implants, cosmetic treatments and referrals to specialists.

Spit, Not Rinse!

Did you know? It is far better to not rinse your teeth after brushing! Rinsing or drinking water after brushing simply washes away the toothpaste which contains fluoride and other helpful ingredients to protect your teeth and gums. Instead, please just spit out the excess. Recent research has found that less than a quater of people correctly spit without rinsing (23%).

If you like to use a mouthwash then we recommend you use it at a different time to toothbrushing so you don’t wash away the precious fluoride which helps protect your teeth. Finally, turning off the tap rather than continually running water whilst you and your family brush your teeth can save thousands of litres of water each year, and up to an extra £70 off water bills for a family of four!

Easter and Emergency Cover

Over the Easter Weekend and upcoming May Bank Holidays and Coronation weekend, we will be offering our normal emergency service. If you have a dental emergency that cannot wait until we re-open, please ring the Practice where the answer machine message will give a telephone number for our on-call dentist. Please be aware there will be an emergency call-out charge if we have to open the practice. Prices can be found on our website.

We wish you all a very Happy Easter.

The post April 2023 appeared first on The Borough Dental Practice, Downton, Wiltshire.

As 2022 draws to a close, we would like to thank all our patients for their valued custom this year. After the travails of COVID, the Borough Team have been grateful to return to more normal conditions in the Practice in recent months. Thank you to all for the way you have helped us comply with best practice to help keep our vulnerable patients safe over the last couple of years.

Christmas Shutdown and Emergency Service

As is our custom, we shut down over the Christmas and New Year period to give our staff a well-deserved break. The Practice will be closed from 5.30pm on 23^rd December until 9am on 3rd January. However, we will be offering an emergency service for our registered patients only throughout the holiday period. If you are suffering dental pain that cannot wait until we open in the New Year, please ring the practice as normal and follow the instructions on the answer machine. Please note there will be an emergency call-out charge. Details on our website.

Happy Christmas!

We wish you a very Healthy and Happy Christmas and every blessing for the year ahead. From everyone at The Borough Dental Practice!

The post December 2022 appeared first on The Borough Dental Practice, Downton, Wiltshire.