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Christmas Cover for Dental Practices: Planning Your Staffing

The Christmas and New Year period is one of the most stressful for dental practice managers. Staff holidays, bank holidays, and increased patient demand create a perfect staffing storm. Here's how to plan ahead and keep your practice running smoothly.

Quick Answer

Dental practices should begin planning Christmas staffing cover in October or early November. Key risks include overlapping holiday requests from permanent staff, difficulty reaching agency locums in the holiday period, and patient demand spikes as people seek to use remaining NHS appointments before the year end. Practices that set up a pre-verified pool of locum nurses through a direct-hire platform are significantly better placed than those relying on agencies or informal networks during December and early January.

Why Christmas Is the Most Challenging Period for Practice Staffing

The Christmas and New Year period creates a unique combination of staffing pressures for dental practices:

  • **Staff holiday concentration**: Most permanent dental nurses will request Christmas leave. Managing overlapping requests and ensuring minimum cover without refusing all holiday is a significant HR challenge
  • **Reduced agency availability**: Traditional staffing agencies see lower locum nurse availability during December, as nurses with established relationships at practices prioritise guaranteed bookings over agency availability
  • **Bank holiday complexity**: The Christmas and New Year period contains multiple bank holidays where practices may close or run reduced lists, making rota planning more complex than the rest of the year
  • **NHS UDA deadline pressure**: For NHS practices, December is often the final quarter of the UDA year. Some practices push activity to meet annual targets, increasing the consequences of any staffing gap

    • The Planning Timeline

    Getting Christmas staffing right requires earlier planning than practices often expect:

    October: Set Your Cover Requirements

    Review your December rota and identify the minimum staffing level you need to keep each surgery open. Determine how many days of locum cover you will need across the period and which sessions are highest priority (typically the final working weeks before Christmas, and the first week back in January).

    November: Confirm Your Permanent Team's Leave

    Issue a holiday booking deadline for permanent staff by early November. This gives you a clear picture of your locum requirements before demand for December nurses peaks. It also prevents the last-minute scramble that occurs when you allow staff to book leave informally in December itself.

    November (continued): Post Your Locum Requirements

    If you use a direct-hire platform, post your December vacancies in November. Early posting gives you first access to the pool of locum nurses available in your area. Nurses prioritise practices they have worked with before, so posting early also increases the chance of getting a nurse who knows your team and software.

    December: Confirm Cover and Brief Locums

    Once locums are booked, send a confirmation with practice details, software name (Dentally, Software of Excellence, R4, etc.), car parking arrangements, and any other practical details they need. A locum who arrives prepared is a locum who is productive from the first appointment.

    Managing Bank Holidays

    Christmas bank holidays affect different practice types differently:

  • **NHS practices** typically close on bank holidays and the risk is in the days immediately before and after (Christmas Eve, 27–30 December, 2–3 January)
  • **Private practices** have more flexibility but often see increased patient demand in the run-up to Christmas, particularly for cosmetic and elective treatments

    • For days between Christmas and New Year, some practices run reduced lists with skeleton teams. Plan your locum requirements for these days specifically - they are often overlooked until too late.

    Retaining Your Best Locums Over the Holiday Period

    If you have locum nurses who have worked well at your practice during the year, the Christmas period is an excellent time to maintain and reward those relationships:

  • **Offer guaranteed bookings first**: Contact your preferred locums before posting publicly. This demonstrates you value them and increases the chance they prioritise you over other bookings
  • **Be clear about your requirements upfront**: Give locums the full December schedule where possible, rather than ad hoc day-by-day requests
  • **Pay on time, every time**: Over the Christmas period, nurses need their income on schedule. Platforms with integrated payment processing (like NetworkDental) ensure timesheets are submitted, approved, and paid promptly

    • How NetworkDental Helps

    NetworkDental's platform makes Christmas planning straightforward for practices. You can post multiple December vacancies in advance, set the dates, sessions, and rates, and receive applications from pre-verified nurses in your area well ahead of the festive period. Our digital timesheet system means there are no paper timesheets to chase over Christmas - nurses submit electronically, practices approve within the platform, and payment processes automatically. No invoice chasing, no delays.

    Plan your Christmas cover now - before the December rush. Post your vacancies →

    Source: British Dental Association

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    Frequently Asked Questions

    When should a dental practice start planning Christmas staffing cover?

    Practices should begin planning Christmas locum requirements in October and post vacancies on direct-hire platforms by early November. This gives the best chance of securing preferred locums before demand peaks and availability reduces.

    Why is it harder to find a dental nurse locum in December?

    Locum availability reduces in December as experienced nurses prioritise long-standing practice relationships, take their own holiday, and the overall pool of available locums shrinks. Practices that plan ahead and post early are much better placed than those who try to book at short notice in December.

    Do locum dental nurses charge more over Christmas?

    Rates for December locum shifts are generally at the top of the standard market range, reflecting both demand and the period. SOS same-day cover in December typically commands a higher premium than at other times of year.

    Can a dental practice use a locum nurse on Christmas Eve or between Christmas and New Year?

    Yes, provided the practice is open. Many dental nurses are happy to work in the Christmas period for the higher rates and flexible arrangement. Early posting is key to securing cover for these dates.

    How do I manage timesheets and payments for locum nurses over Christmas?

    Digital platforms like NetworkDental handle timesheet submission, approval, and payment automatically. This removes the need for paper timesheets and manual bank transfers during what is already a busy administrative period.

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