The Dental Access Portal provides a central platform for people to register their interest in NHS dentistry and for health boards to allocate places for routine dental treatment.

Welsh health secretary Jeremy Miles said: ‘Access to NHS dentistry is not where we or the public want it to be.

‘This new service will help people who may not have seen a dentist for some time get access to routine NHS appointments.'

He added: ‘Capturing this information in one place will have enormous benefits, it will provide health boards with a clear understanding of need in their area and enable them to manage the allocation of people to dental practices as capacity allows.

‘For the public it will remove the need for them to have to contact multiple practices, providing an equitable and fairer system of access to all.'

Since the trial began in Powys, thousands of people have already been added to the list and will be allocated an NHS dentist as appointments become available.

Warren Tolley, dental director at Powys Teaching Health Board, which was the first part of Wales to trial the new portal, said: ‘Our experience has been extremely positive. The interface is very user friendly, allowing people to quickly enter their details, and the admin function has made allocating people to a dental practice quick and easy.'

The new dental access portal will be run by Digital Health and Care Wales (DHCW).

Sam Hall, director of primary care, community and mental health digital services at DHCW said: ‘The development of the Dental Access Portal means we now have a national platform that can provide a clearer picture of demand for routine NHS Wales dental services.

‘Allowing people to enrol themselves or people they care for using one online system simplifies and makes fairer the process of registering an interest with an NHS dentist for everyone in Wales.'