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Welcome to NEBDN

Leading Awarding Organisation for Dental Nurses in the UK

The National Examining Board for Dental Nurses (NEBDN) is a registered charity and a leading Awarding Organisation for Dental Nurses in the UK, delivering awards in Diploma, Apprenticeship, and 7 Specialised Post-Registration areas. We work with 100+ Training Providers across England, Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales, to ensure that Learners’ knowledge, understanding and practical skills are assessed by highly experienced practitioners. NEBDN has been operating as an organisation for over 80 years.

Work with us as a Training Provider

Click here to find out more information about delivering an NEBDN qualification.

Becoming a Dental Nurse

Click here to find out more about our Dental Nursing qualifications.

Who We Are

NEBDN Supports qualifications in Dental Nurse Education and Development

We offer a variety of qualifications including Diploma, Apprenticeship, and 7 specialised Post-Registration qualifications in Radiography, Implant, Oral Health, Sedation, Orthodontics, Special Care and Fluoride Varnish. We work with key regulators Ofqual, the General Dental Council (GDC) and the Council for the Curriculum, Examinations & Assessment (CCEA). NEBDN collaborates with over 100+ accredited Training Providers and supports more than 5,000 Learners annually.

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Training Providers

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Learners

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Qualifications

Qualifications

Diploma in Dental Nursing

The purpose of this qualification is to prepare trainee Dental Nurses in the foundation of Dental Nursing, so they can demonstrate the highest standards in terms of knowledge, skills and professional attributes.

Dental nurse with patient in dentist chair

Dental Nurse Apprenticeship

This provides an alternative training route to preparing Dental Nurses in the foundation of Dental Nursing through funded delivery.

Dental nurse giving an x-ray

Dental Radiography

The purpose of this qualification is for registered Dental Nurses who would like to be more involved with patient care and would like to support their Dentists in the diagnosis and treatment planning by providing good diagnostic radiographs.

Patient in dentist chair

Dental Sedation Nursing

The purpose of this qualification is to achieve a balanced mixture of knowledge and practical skills, as well as demonstrating an appropriate professional attitude. To ensure our Dental Sedation qualifications reflect the areas of practice the Dental Nurse works in, we offer the following three options: Certificate in Dental Sedation Nursing, Award in Inhalation Sedation Dental Nursing and Award in Intravenous Sedation Dental Nursing.

Dental nurse showing x-ray

Orthodontic Dental Nursing

The purpose of this qualification is to cover the biological background to Orthodontics and the various appliances used today and how to maintain them. This qualification also emphasises the medico-legal aspects of treatment and the importance of good communication between patient and the Dental team.

Dental nurse and patient

Special Care Dental Nursing

The purpose of this qualification is to ensure that you receive a broad range of knowledge and understanding relevant to Special Care Dentistry. This includes social and ethical issues, together with a working knowledge of the relevant current legislation and guidance.

Dentist demonstrating oral hygiene

Oral Health Education

The purpose of this qualification is to equip a Dental Nurse wishing to develop professionally to become an Oral Health Educator, with the knowledge and skills required to be able to effectively deliver Oral Health care messages, educate various patient groups and have the ability to adapt information and communication to the specific needs of the patient.

Dentist and dental nurse with patient in dentist chair

Dental Implant Nursing

The purpose of this qualification is to enable a Dental Nurse to be a vital part of the Clinical Implant team supporting the Dentist, whilst contributing to the meticulous planning and exacting standards to ensure an optimum result for each patient. You will gain an in-depth knowledge of pre and post-operative instructions, allowing you to give these confidently to the patient and their chaperone.

Dental nurse and patient

Fluoride Varnish Application

The purpose of this qualification is to support Dental Nurses’ development both professionally and on a personal level; developing self-confidence and self-belief. Through enhancing your skills, you work as part of a team educating and improving the oral health of patients.

Two dental nurses

Dental Careers

Embarking on an NEBDN qualification isn’t just about becoming a Dental Nurse. Our qualifications serve as a gateway to a multitude of professional avenues, each offering unique challenges and opportunities for growth. There is no end to the variety of rewarding career options awaiting those with an NEBDN qualification.

Recent FAQs

To become a Dental Nurse you must first select one of our accredited Training Providers to work with to complete NEBDN’s Level 3 Diploma, or Apprenticeship. Both are routes to registration. Please see Becoming a Dental Nurse.

In order to register with the General Dental Council (GDC), you must have successfully completed and passed a GDC recognised course, such as NEBDN’s Dental Nursing Diploma or Apprenticeship.

To apply for registration click here, or telephone the General Dental Council on 0845 222 4141.

If you have a complaint about your Provider, you must first raise this with them directly, following their complaints procedure. If you have followed their process and it remains unresolved, you can raise this issue following our Complaints Policy listed in Policies available on the website.

We work with over 100 Training Providers across England, Wales, Northern Ireland and Scotland. You can find one close to your area by using our Provider search.

If you are interested in working with us and delivering an NEBDN qualification, then you will need to meet our Accreditation requirements. On completion of the expression of interest requirements we will then guide you through the accreditation approval process.

If you are interested in becoming a Provider, click here.

An Awarding Organisation, also known as an awarding body or exam board, is an organisation that designs, develops, delivers, and awards the recognition of learning outcomes (knowledge, skills, and/or competencies). As an Awarding Organisation, NEBDN is responsible for validating its qualifications and making sure they meet the standards of its regulators. NEBDN’s involvement with Learners is to provide the exam information, live assessments, awarding and certification relevant to each individual.

The Provider, (training Provider) delivers the training directly to the Learners (students). The Provider can be a hospital, college or independent training company who are accredited to deliver our qualifications. Each Provider determines their course fees and the style of training and delivery. NEBDN does not run courses or train Learners. To search for a Provider, please click here.

As part of our vision to be the leading Awarding Organisation of qualifications in Dental Nurse education, we believe individuals all learn differently, which is why qualifications are offered in more ways than one, for example, face-to-face, online, or blended learning. Our wide network of Providers aims to offer a range of options for all our qualifications, so please contact them to find out more about the options available via our Provider Search.

News

NEBDN regulated qualification now launched in UK and Northern Ireland!

NEBDN is pleased to announce that the Awarding Organisation has released a newly regulated qualification – the Level 3 Diploma in Dental Nursing. The qualification is regulated by Ofqual in England, and the Council for the Curriculum, Examinations & Assessment (CCEA) in Northern Ireland, and covers all the Learning Outcomes in the General Dental Council […]

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