British Dental Association Museum

The BDA Dental Museum is the place to find out about the history of dental care and dentists in the UK. With over 20,000 items the museum has the largest collection of material relating to the history of dentistry in the UK, from its time as a marketplace spectacle to the complex procedures and treatment of today.

The museum aims to bring out the relevance of the past, present and future of dentistry, to inspire and educate existing and new audiences and to influence the perception of the science, practice and social impact of dentistry and the importance of being and regularly visiting a dentist.

The museum will achieve this through growing and caring for its collection and by making it accessible to all through displays, publications, education services, research opportunities and in the virtual environment.

Schools

Schools and groups are particularly welcome outside normal opening hours. 

Only a selection of the collection is on display at any time; if you are a researcher and would like access to objects in store please see our enquiries and research page.

The BDA Dental Museum provides a range of services for formal and informal education groups of all ages... 

Early years: our loans boxes support the topic 'People Who Help Us' and include jigsaws, games, dental outfits and books. 

Primary schools: linked to the year 3 'Teeth and eating' curriculum we offer full day sessions at the museum, an outreach service to schools, loans boxes and teachers’ packs. Our aim is reinforce messages provided by teachers by placing the topic in a broader, historical context and through fun methods to encourage pupils to take better care of their teeth through an appreciation of the lack of opportunities had by most people in the past. 

Secondary schools: We have downloadable resources on 20th century medicine for secondary school teachers, particularly those teaching Year 9. These resources have been developed in conjunction with the Museum of the Royal Pharmaceutical Society. Visit our Health Histories website for further details.

Adult groups: (e.g. local history/archaeology societies, U3AS, walking tours). We provide guided tours of the museum which can last from 20 minutes to two hours - the latter includes a film show and the chance to handle some original artefacts. We also provide an outreach service giving talks about the history of dental care. These talks can also be arranged in conjunction with the Centre for Human Bioarchaeology at the Museum of London.