Over 70 Foundation Dentists and Therapists currently working in practices across the South West gathered together at the Bedruthan Steps Hotel in Cornwall in March 2026 for a two-day conference organised by Smile Together with Health Education England (HEE) Workforce Training & Education.
Craig Barclay, Postgraduate Dental Dean for NHS E Southwest, opened the conference’s first session, The Power of Prevention: Oral Cancer Insights. He was joined by Professor Chris Butterworth (Oral Rehabilitation Specialist) as they explored life-changing techniques in early detection and rehabilitation. Each conference session ended with a live panel discussion chaired by the one of the Training Programme Directors.
In the afternoon the Periodontology session featured three distinguished speakers, each bringing their expertise to the forefront of periodontal care. Dr Praveen Sharma explored the relationship between periodontal disease and systemic health, sharing practical insights from both his academic research and clinical experience to help attendees apply evidence-based approaches in everyday practice. Dr Fiona Sandom MBE highlighted best practices for preventive periodontal care and the role of dental therapists and hygienists in improving patient outcomes, drawing on her extensive experience across NHS, community, and educational settings. Dr Paul Baker focused on the prevention of peri-implant disease, providing advanced techniques and clinical strategies for managing complex periodontal cases.
Following the individual presentations, all three speakers joined a panel discussion, offering delegates the opportunity to ask questions and discuss real-world challenges in periodontology, leaving attendees with practical, actionable knowledge to enhance patient care.
Recognising the importance of building your peer-to-peer dental network, on arrival each delegate was encouraged to explore the conference ‘Marketplace’. Stands included Smile Together, Dental & Therapy Foundation Training, Henry Shein, DDU, Humphrey and Co Chartered Accountants, Colgate
In the evening, we enjoyed a three-course dinner together and music from live band The Busketeers.
After breakfast on day two, we reconvened in the conference room for session 3 ‘Wellbeing Symposium.’ We heard from Professor John Gibson on the culture of the dental profession, professionalism, and the work-life balance for new generations of dentists. Dr Ian Mills discussed opportunities within NHS Dental Practice and Dr Phil Dawson discussed dealing with adversity during your career.
During the conference we were fundraising for two incredible charities: St Petrocs and The Canmore Trust. The Canmore Trust works to prevent suicide by helping people find safe spaces to stay in the world, while also supporting individuals and communities affected by suicide through trauma-informed, lived-experience support. Today’s postvention is tomorrow’s prevention. The charity was founded by Professor John Gibson whose youngest son, Cameron, died by suicide in 2019, aged 24 years. John now spends much of his time in suicide prevention and suicide postvention, having established The Canmore Trust in early 2022.
St Petrocs are a Cornwall-based charity working to end homelessness and ensure that everyone has a safe and secure place to call home. For over 38 years, they have provided vital services including outreach, advice, emergency and supported accommodation, health and wellbeing support, and skills training. Their mission is clear: to make homelessness in Cornwall rare, brief, and non-recurring.
The Canmore Trust and St Petrocs formed part of our marketplace on day 2 alongside Healthy Cornwall and TMJ Massage Therapies, continuing our health and wellbeing theme.
We ran a charity raffle and auction and raised a staggering £1892 to be split between the 2 charities. Some of the prizes included:
£100 of Love to Shop vouchers – donated by Wrights Dental
Boutique Whitening Kit – donated by Boutique Whitening
£50 Amazon Voucher – donated by Humphrey & Co Chartered Accountants)
Bottle of Pomeroy Champagne – donated by Henry Schein
Colgate Merchandise – donated by Colgate
Colgate Pro Clnical 250+ Electric Toothbrush – donated by Smile Together
Bottle of Johnnie Walker Red Label – donated by Smile Together
All in all, the conference was a huge success, generating comments such as:
“All of the speakers were very engaging and genuinely interesting to listen to- which can be quite rare for a 2-day conference!”
“I enjoyed the talks and evening meal. Nice to spend time with a large cohort of FDs”
“The venue was beautiful and the speakers were really engaging in the way they presented their respective topics”
“The most valuable takeaway from the conference was oral cancer awareness”
“I enjoyed the head and neck cancer talks and communal atmosphere the most”
This will undoubtedly help to retain some of these wonderful dentists in the region, ideally to work with us here in Cornwall.
