A dental clinic supporting nearly 10,000 NHS patients in Inverclyde has become the 20th practice in the latest acquisition by Glasgow-based Scottish Dental Care.
Established in 2005 by owner and dentist Catherine Jones, Port Glasgow’s Belhaven Dental has five surgeries and 20 staff who will all join Scottish Dental Care. The group, set up in 2016 by brothers Philip and Christopher Friel, has been expanding on the back of investment by Business Growth Fund (BGF).
Having run the clinic with her husband and practice manager, Colin Jones, the couple said they were looking for a group that would ensure the team would continue to thrive and allow Catherine to focus on providing on dental care.
“I’ve always been passionate about supporting my team, giving them opportunities to thrive in a challenging yet rewarding environment," she said.
“We weren’t sure if we wanted to sell, however after meeting Philip and Christopher, hearing their story and plans – especially around their commitment to training – spoke volumes about the culture within Scottish Dental Care. We knew then that this was exactly the organisation we wanted to work with.
“It’s a bonus too that everyone in the team will stay on, and that they have created a new role for Colin.” He will transition into a wider role supporting Scottish Dental Care across a number of projects.
READ MORE: Glasgow Cardonald Dental Clinic expands to meet NHS demand
Lynn Hood, chief executive of Scottish Dental Care, said: “This is a prime example of an incredibly well-run community practice.
“We were thrilled to have been approached based on the strength of our culture, it reaffirms that what we are doing is working and word is spreading."
The exclusively Scottish dental group consists of 80 dentists and employs more than 200 team members, serving around 200,000 patients from Inverness to Dumfries. Its practices provide a mix of treatments with most offering NHS services alongside private care.
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