PMA Dental Practice Manager – Incorporating the Dental Practice Manager Level 4 Apprenticeship Standard & ILM Level 4 certificate

This apprenticeship will be retired from 28/04/2026. Current apprentices will be able to complete their programme. Employers who wish to start new apprentices should consider using ST0385 Operations Manager. Please see the PMA Evolved Leader Apprenticeship by clicking here

Incorporating the Dental Practice Manager Level 4 Apprenticeship Standard and ILM Level 4 Certificate in Leadership & Management.

Managing all non-clinical aspects of a dental surgery, leading the practice team and achieving excellent patient care and cost efficiency.

Fees

This apprenticeship is 95% government-funded with a 5% employer co-investment. Please call or email for more information.

If you are an employer with a pay bill over £3 million each year, you will automatically be paying into the apprenticeship Levy. Please call or email for more information.

Further funding information can be found here.

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Duration: 21 Months

Location: Workplace

It is expected that the learner will be working towards Functional Skills Level 2 or have prior accepted GCSE certificates. Alternatively, learners with long-standing evidence of work to a Level 3 standard may apply if they are supported by their employer and would then follow Functional Skills training alongside the apprenticeship.

It should also be noted that the learner will need to achieve a Level 2 standard in English and mathematics prior to their End Point Assessment. These are referred to as Functional Skills and during enrolment, learners will be required to complete both Maths and English Initial Assessments and diagnostic tests to assess their level of understanding. If learners are exempt due to prior achievements, certificates must be presented as evidence before enrolment if this is the case, failure to do so will result in learners having to complete Functional Skills.

To be eligible for the apprenticeship learners will need to work a minimum of 30 hours per week and have the support of their line manager and employer. Learners will complete a self-assessment to assess their knowledge, skills and behaviours to ensure they are eligible for the apprenticeship.

Induction

Understanding of ethics and its impact on a role within a dental practice.

Understanding the safeguarding implications of working within a dental practice.

A skills-scan to take into account any prior learning which can be credited.

Units

• recruitment, selection, contracts

• personal/professional development planning (induction and training)

• performance management (supervision and appraisal)

• equality, diversity, grievance, discipline, whistleblowing

• rota management and absence management

• establishing high quality patient care/customer service standards

• managing the patient journey

• managing patient records and databases (updates, recalls, governance)

Understanding and knowledge of all roles within dental team.

Broad understanding of dental diseases.

Understanding and executing of clinical audits.

Understanding of dental terminology.

Understand how to initiate and manage change by identifying barriers and know how to overcome them.

Understand data security and management, and the effective use of technology in an organisation.

• size, share, competitor profile

• effective strategies for attracting and retaining patients

how to represent the practice in the local community

• General Health and Safety (e.g. facilities, fire)

• Healthcare Safety (e.g. Infection Control, Waste, Radiation, Medical Emergencies)

• Information Governance (e.g. confidentiality, information security, data protection, access to records)

• Establish internal standards (policies & procedures) for high quality care

• Train the team to meet internal and external standards

• Implement monitoring systems for continuous improvement e.g. complaints handling, learning from feedback, incidents, complaints

• establish budgetary & production targets

• manage claims and monitor compliance with claim requirements

• meet the expectations of organisational stakeholders

• service delivery and remuneration under the National Health Service

• service delivery and remuneration for private delivery of dental care

• local / national changes in dental service delivery

• Understanding the role and responsibilities of a manager

• Communicating the organisation’s vision and strategy

• Clarifying & supporting company policies

• Setting clear goals and expectations

• Supporting individual personal and professional development

• Providing mentoring & coaching for individual team members

• Being able to seek feedback on workplace performance

• Leading by example

• Strategic thinking at a local/practice level

• setting SMART objectives

• planning and delegating work

• allocating resources efficiently to meet deliverables and deadlines

• monitoring, evaluating and improving individual and team processes

• developing advanced IT Skills to meet requirements in role (SOE/R4)

• negotiating

• presenting internal & external marketing plans and campaigns

• presenting and interpreting data for Senior Management

• briefing the work team

• communicating change

This will include a wide range of teaching and learning techniques and styles including one-to-one coaching, discussions and teaching, observations, practical assessments, mentoring, independent research and e-learning. The assigned PMA Tutor/Assessor will use online face-to-face platforms such as Zoom/MS Teams/FaceTime/Skype, as well as periodic workplace visits.

Learners will have access to Aptem, our e-post system that supports monitoring progression throughout the apprenticeship.  It is the central system that keeps track of learner assignments, and evidence and holds resources that will support learners to complete the apprenticeship.

Line managers will be key drivers in learner development, importantly in agreeing the unique learning plan and keeping abreast of progress at every step.

A PMA Tutor will be assigned to work with the candidate throughout the duration of the course and will support them through their journey. The programme will be delivered through face-to-face learning with their Tutor, online via the ILM Illuminate portal and through tutor observations. The Total Qualification Time is a minimum of 130 hours.

The learner will be able to evidence that they spend 6 hours per week on learning/training and that this is:

• Directly relevant to the apprenticeship standard or framework and is teaching new knowledge, skills and behaviours
• The learning is taking place within the apprentice’s normal working hours (paid hours excluding overtime)

Apprentices will be expected to keep a log of all learning activities while working towards the off-the-job requirements of 6 hours per week.

Off-the-job activities could include:

• Attending masterclass teaching and learning sessions
• Coaching
• Independent research
• In-house training
• Shadowing
• Industry visits
• Mentoring
• Supervision with employer
• Writing assignments
• Online learning
• Manufacturer training
• Roleplay
• Simulation exercises
• Team meetings that include training
• Completion of a reflective journal

Functional Skills are nationally recognised qualifications in English and maths.  They are part of a government initiative and designed to improve literacy and numeracy skills across the workforce.  Due to this, Functional Skills are a mandatory part of Apprenticeship Standards.  Anyone enrolling in an Apprenticeship must complete Functional Skills English and Functional Skills maths unless they have already achieved them previously at Level 2 or have GCSEs (or equivalent) in both subjects at Grade C or above.  Certificates must be presented as evidence before enrolment if this is the case, failure to do so will result in learners having to complete Functional Skills.

In order to support you in completing Functional Skills, PMA will undertake an initial assessment and diagnostic assessment which will enable its specialist tutors to identify which areas to focus on with you and this will form the basis of a personalised learning plan.

It is important to bear in mind that Functional Skills do require apprentices to sit formal examinations.  The team will support you with exam techniques alongside your learning plan and will arrange for the examinations to take place at your workplace.

If you are undertaking a Level 2 Apprenticeship, you are required to complete Functional Skills English and maths at Level 1.  If however, you complete Functional Skills early, it is a government requirement for PMA to upskill you to Level 2 Functional Skills.  If you are undertaking an Apprenticeship at Level 3 or higher, then you will automatically be enrolled in Level 2 Functional Skills.

EPA is the name given to a series of tests that an apprentice must complete at the end of their apprenticeship in order to receive their certificate. The EPA confirms apprentices are capable of undertaking the job that they have been trained to do.  These tests are undertaken with an external organisation (known as an end point assessment organisation) to remove any bias from the examination process.  The employer will choose the end point assessment organisation and PMA will support them to obtain information pertinent to this if needed.

When apprentices enrol on an apprenticeship, they study various units covering a wide range of relevant topics for their job enhancing their knowledge, skills and behaviours. This is often referred to as being ‘on programme’ and apprentices must complete all of the mandatory components of this including Functional Skills where appropriate.

Once this is completed, it is at this point the employer, after discussion with their apprentice and PMA, ‘signs off’ their apprentice as ready for EPA. This decision process is known as the ‘gateway’ to End Point Assessment.

The apprentice must be assessed by a minimum of 2 different assessment methods and the methods used will be the ones most relevant to the job.

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