The GDC has finally said what many of us have known for years about the shortage of dental technicians. But before we sound the alarm, we should ask the right questions.
Every year the General Dental Council publishes its Registration Statistical Report. Every year the dental profession scans it for headlines. Dental therapist numbers up, hygienist numbers up, nurses up, and of course, dentists up.
Every year, dental technician numbers go quietly in the opposite direction.
This year, the GDC’s 2025 Registration Statistical Report, published in May 2026, made history. For the first time ever, the number of registered dental technicians has fallen below 5,000. Six consecutive years of decline. In 2025, just 143 new dental technicians joined the register.
One hundred and forty-three.
In the entire United Kingdom.
