The General Dental Services and Personal Dental Services Transitional Provisions Order 2005

Premises, facilities and equipment

12.—(1) Where a Primary Care Trust is not satisfied that the prospective contractor has practice premises to be used for the provision of services under the contract that are—

(a) suitable premises for the delivery of those services; or

(b) sufficient to meet the reasonable needs of the contractor’s patients,

paragraph 12 of Schedule 3 to the GDS Contracts Regulations shall apply as substituted by paragraph (2).

(2) For that paragraph 12 substitute the following—

“Premises, facilities and equipment

12.— (1) The Primary Care Trust and prospective contractor shall ensure that the contract includes a plan that—

(a) is drawn up and agreed by the Primary Care Trust and the prospective contractor; and

(b) specifies—

(i) the steps to be taken by the contractor to bring the practice premises up to the appropriate standard,

(ii) any financial support that may be available from the Primary Care Trust, and

(iii) the timescale on which the steps referred to in sub-paragraph (i) will be taken.

(2) Subject to the plan referred to in sub-paragraph (1), the contractor shall ensure that the practice premises used for the provision of services under the contract are—

(a) suitable for the delivery of those services; and

(b) sufficient to meet the reasonable needs of the contractor’s patients.

(3) The obligation in sub-paragraph (2) includes providing proper and sufficient waiting-room accommodation for patients.

(4) The contractor shall provide, in relation to all of the services to be provided under the contract, such other facilities and equipment as are necessary to enable it to perform those services properly.

(5) In this paragraph, “practice premises” includes a mobile surgery.”.