Patients at a Swindon dental practice have been told that they will no longer be able to have checkups and treatments on the NHS.

Jennifer Norris and her partner Andy Fant will have to pay up to continue seeing their dentists at Clyde House on Bath Road because the healthcare provider has decided to go private.

The Adver first reported on this in January and more patients are now being affected by the change.

The couple has been with Clyde House Dental Practice for more than six years and could try to find other dentists in the Swindon area, but have limited options as it becomes increasingly difficult to find local practices that are taking on new NHS patients.

Jennifer heard in February that it would no longer be possible to book NHS appointments with her dentist and was not allowed to transfer to the one her partner used at the same practice.

Then, earlier this month, Andy was told that from July 1, Clyde House will no longer provide NHS care and that he too would have to sign up for a Denplan payment plan of £13.25 a month or become a pay-as-you-go patient after that date.

Andy told the Adver: "The NHS was set up so that everyone was entitled to healthcare based on need and not means.

"The system in England is not perfect but it's better than anywhere else. We don't want to live in an American-style system - at what point does dental care become a luxury?

"I've had an NHS dentist for over 50 years and at my age, my teeth need more maintenance.

"I'm fortunate that I can afford to pay - but if people can't, where are they supposed to go? Do they go back to tying a string to a doorknob?

"If people stop going, they'll start having issues with their teeth and be in pain but unable to afford treatment.

"This is wrong. If this situation is affecting me, it's also affecting everyone I know."

The email to Clyde House patients seen by the Adver said: "The landscape for providing dental care via the NHS has changed significantly, and it is becoming increasingly difficult for us to maintain the high standards of care that you deserve.

"We know that there have been many local practices that have already stopped providing NHS dental care.

"We truly have not made this decision lightly and have hung on to working within the NHS dental contract for as long as possible.

"Thank you for your understanding and support in the practice over the years, we all look forward to seeing you again soon."

Jennifer added: "It's a bit annoying and a real shame. We have reluctantly gone private to stay with the same dentists and did not bother looking anywhere else because I didn't think we could find another one, it's really bad in Swindon at the moment."

The practice's director, Dr Keith H Garber, said: “We have provided NHS care at Clyde House for over 20 years and this is not a decision we’ve taken lightly.

“The facts are since 2006 we have been working to a contract Parliament’s Health Committee dubbed unfit for purpose.

"It’s a failed system that puts government targets ahead of patient care.

“The result is we’ve struggled to recruit and retain team members. Key vacancies have gone unfilled for the past five years and particularly the last 12 months and we just couldn’t go on this way.

“Over summer, the Prime Minister pledged to ‘restore’ NHS dentistry. Sadly, we’ve seen little sign the government was ready to keep that promise.”