In short
GDC investigation support for a dentist or dental care professional comes from four places: your indemnifier, defence organisation or insurer for advice on the case; the free fitness to practise service and the wellbeing services that the GDC itself lists; your GDC caseworker for questions about the process; and remediation that gives your response substance. For that last part, our Probity & Ethics How to Deal with a Complaint or Investigation course costs £79 (£50 with Bulk Buy 10) for 2 CPD hours and is CPD certified and accredited by The CPD Certification Service. You can keep working while the GDC investigates.
Just had a letter from the GDC?
You have allegations to comment on, a date to reply by, and questions about who can help. This guide lists the help and what each source covers.
Keeping your CPD going?
A GDC investigation does not stop your CPD. A course you complete as remediation can also go into your CPD record.
GDC investigation support and advice: who can help a dentist?
The GDC’s page for dental professionals facing a concern suggests you contact your indemnifier, defence organisation or insurer to ask what advice or support is available to you, and says you may also contact a solicitor. Those are the sources of advice on the case itself: what to say in your comments, what to send and whether to agree to anything the GDC proposes.
- Your indemnifier or defence organisation. Call them on the day the GDC letter arrives. Your membership may include a dento-legal adviser and representation, and they will want to see the letter and the allegations before you reply.
- A solicitor. If your indemnity does not cover regulatory work, or you want independent representation, a solicitor who handles GDC cases is the next route.
- Free fitness to practise support. The GDC lists the Queen Mary Legal Advice Centre, which offers free practical support and advice to professionals under investigation.
- Your professional association. If you are a member of the British Dental Association or another dental body, ask what member support it offers.
Our role is different: we do not advise on your case or write your response. We provide the course and the reflection work that a response can point to.
Where can dentists get wellbeing support during a GDC investigation?
The GDC publishes its own list of health and wellbeing support for those facing a fitness to practise investigation, and asks you to reach out if you are struggling. The services it lists for dental professionals include:
- ConfiDental, a confidential listening and signposting helpline, open every day and staffed by practising or retired dental professionals.
- PASS (DPASS), support for dentists facing complaints or performance issues.
- The BDA Benevolent Fund, for financial help in a crisis.
- The Dentists’ Health Support Trust and the NHS Practitioner Health programme, for mental or physical health and addiction.
- Samaritans, free on 116 123 at any time.
Contact details for each, and services in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, are on the GDC’s support for those facing a fitness to practise investigation page.
What can the GDC caseworker help with?
Your caseworker is the contact for the process: when your comments are due, extra time if you need it, and where to find help. The GDC’s standard period to comment on allegations is 28 days; it says more time may be given in some circumstances, and that it is worth contacting your caseworker if you need it. You do not have to submit comments, but a reply in time helps the GDC resolve the case sooner. If health information is involved, the GDC says it will discuss with you before it shares that information with an organisation providing support. The caseworker does not advise you on your defence; that is what your indemnifier or solicitor is for.
How long does a GDC investigation take?
The GDC publishes its targets. It aims to make an initial assessment within 5 working days in 90 per cent of cases. It aims to complete 75 per cent of investigations within seven months (30 working weeks), with complex cases taking up to 50 working weeks, and 75 per cent of case examiner decisions within 18 to 20 weeks. Case examiners, one clinical and one lay, can close the case, issue a letter of advice or a warning, ask you to agree undertakings, or refer the case to a practice committee. The full route is in our guide to a GDC referral.
How a course supports your GDC response and your CPD
Case examiners read your comments with the rest of the evidence. A response that shows you understand the concern and have acted on it reads differently from one that only disputes the facts. Remediation is the part you control while you wait for a decision:
- Match the course to the allegation. Communication, consent, records, a boundary or honesty each has its own course; our GDC courses guide matches each one to the Standards for the Dental Team.
- Add the process course if the letter itself is the worry. How to Deal with a Complaint or Investigation covers how to respond to a complaint or a regulator, show insight and plan remediation.
- Write down what changed. A dated certificate shows the course took place; a short reflection on what you now do differently in the surgery shows why it matters. Give both to your adviser to decide what goes in your comments.
The same certificate can also go into your CPD record; how GDC CPD works, and the hours for each registered title, are in our guide to CPD courses for dentists and dental nurses.
Please note
This guide is general information about where to find help, not legal advice, and the GDC does not approve or endorse any course. No course decides the outcome of a GDC case. Speak to your indemnifier, defence organisation or a solicitor before you send anything to the GDC.
Courses for a GDC investigation: prices and Bulk Buy
For dentists and dental care professionals
How to Deal with a Complaint or Investigation
What a complaint or regulator investigation asks of you, how to respond, how to show insight, and how to plan and record remediation, with a dated certificate. Probity & Ethics is CPD accredited and certified by The CPD Certification Service (provider no. 13197).
- £79 (£50 with Bulk Buy 10)
- 2 CPD hours
- Certificate on completion
Courses that sit beside it
A practice buying for its team can use Bulk Buy: £200 for 3 courses, £300 for 5, £500 for 10. Not sure which course fits the allegation? Book a free 15-minute call or see which course do I need.
Guides that help
The CPD courses linked from this guide, How to Deal with a Complaint or Investigation, Ethics and Ethical Standards for Dentists & Dental Professionals, How to Ensure a Similar Mistake or Misconduct Will Not Be Repeated in Future and Professionalism in Documentation for Healthcare Professionals, are by Probity & Ethics, written by Dr Shehzad Iqbal, CPD certified and accredited by The CPD Certification Service (provider no. 13197) and offered since 2020.
Questions and answers
Where can a dentist get GDC investigation support?
For advice on the case, from an indemnifier, defence organisation, insurer or solicitor; for free fitness to practise advice, from the Queen Mary Legal Advice Centre; for wellbeing, from services the GDC lists, such as ConfiDental, PASS and NHS Practitioner Health; and for questions about the process, from your GDC caseworker.
Who gives GDC investigation advice to dental nurses?
The same sources as for dentists. Dental nurses, hygienists, therapists and technicians can ask their indemnity provider or insurer, a solicitor or the free Queen Mary service, and can use the wellbeing services on the GDC support page.
Can my GDC caseworker advise me on my response?
No. The caseworker can explain the stage your case has reached, the date your comments are due and whether more time is possible, and can point you to sources of help. Advice on what to say comes from your indemnifier, defence organisation or a solicitor.
Will I be told about a concern the GDC closes at the start?
No. At initial assessment the GDC checks whether it is the right body to act; if it decides no investigation is needed, the case is not opened and the dental professional is not informed. Only a concern that goes on to assessment or investigation reaches you.
Does a course help with a GDC investigation?
A course on the subject of the concern, with a written reflection, gives your adviser evidence of insight and remediation to consider for your comments. It does not decide the case, and the GDC does not approve or endorse courses.
Does the GDC investigation course count as CPD?
It gives 2 CPD hours with a dated certificate, CPD certified and accredited by The CPD Certification Service, which you can add to your CPD record. Our guide to CPD courses for dentists and dental nurses explains how GDC CPD is recorded.
Sources
This guide is based on the following GDC pages, checked on 3 November 2026.
