Leiston residents launch petition to bring NHS dental services back to the town
Residents in Leiston, East Suffolk, have launched a petition to bring dental services back to the town.
Earlier this year, the town’s last remaining dental practice closed leaving locals without a dentist. Hundreds of people have now signed a petition to restore services in the town and crowds also gathered in the centre of town to stage a protest. A group of residents is campaigning to get people to sign the petition and lobby for a new dental practice.
Leiston has lost two clinics in the last 18 months and residents are now facing a lengthy wait or a trip to Colchester or Chelmsford to see a dentist. Most of the surgeries closer to the town are not accepting new NHS patients and some have switched to private care.
The petition was set up by Steve Marsling, one of many patients affected by the closure of the town’s only practice earlier this year. Mr Marsling said that residents would not “take no for an answer” and added that the area needs more NHS dentists.
There is a severe shortage of dentists across the county and patients are struggling to get appointments. In the first two hours, more than 230 people signed the petition and locals were queuing to add their signature and share their own experiences and stories.
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