Brilliant Healthy Smiles is founded by Dr Fraz and is a social enterprise based in Bradford, West Yorkshire. As the first of its kind, it operates as a dental clinic that follows NHS pricing structures without being part of the NHS. This innovative model will make dental care more accessible for individuals facing financial hardship. Furthermore, it will allow access to thousands of patients who cannot register with an NHS dentist due to lack of availability.
As a successful businessman, I felt a responsibility to align my professional growth with social value. Embracing social investment enabled me to build trust within the community and enhance my brand's credibility. I was pleased to find the process both accessible and efficient.
* on behalf of Local Access Bradford and District partnership (https://www.localaccessbd.co.uk)
Challenge
Brilliant Healthy Smiles is addressing a critical challenge in Bradford where, around 57% of the population, which equates to approximately 319,314 individuals, are not registered with an NHS dentist.
This lack of access disproportionately affects BAME communities, who are more susceptible to dental problems and face barriers in obtaining necessary dental care. Additionally, the NHS does not have the capacity to set up any more dentists in Bradford, hence the reason why the volumes of unregistered people are so high.
Statistics in more detail
• The population of Bradford stands at 560,200
• Of these, around 57% being 319,314 are not registered with an NHS dentist
• BAME communities have a higher prevalence of suffering from dental diseases
• The BAME population of Bradford sits at 43.3% compared to a BAME community UK average of 18%
• Across Bradford, more than 90% of the people not registered with an NHS dentist during October 2024 who tried to access a dentist failed to do so.
• Only 10.7% of these people sought private dental care.
Solution
Dr. Fraz Ali, a qualified dentist, successful businessman and entrepreneur, who after carrying out extensive research to capture this data, has identified a gap in the market and is committed to offering dental care to those who need it most by establishing Brilliant Healthy Smiles (BHS).
This dentist will operate independently of the NHS but will follow NHS pricing structures. His practice is located in the heart of Bradford city centre and aims to provide affordable dental services to the unregistered population, particularly targeting racialised communities and reducing the number of individuals suffering from untreated dental issues.
The organisation has secured a blend of both grant and repayable finance which has been structured with zero percent interest to remove a barrier that would prevent many communities across Bradford district from accessing social investment. This product is open to all communities and there are also traditional social investment products available.
The funding package consists of an unsecured loan from social investor, Key Fund, (£205,000) which was made on behalf of Local ACCESS Bradford District Partnership, who also agreed a grant (£20,000) through Give Bradford, alongside a (£57,175) personal investment from Dr. Fraz, totalling £275,000 for the development works.
Instead of paying interest, the borrower pays a fee upfront. In this case, the fee was 3.5%, amounting to £7,175. This structure aligns with Shariah principles, which prohibit the payment or receipt of interest.
The social investment of £225,000 will specifically be used as a contribution to make the new dentist practice building fit for purpose and will be given in three instalments.
The instalments will be structured as follows:
Instalment 1 - £20,000
Instalment 2 - £69,000
Instalment 3 - £69,000
Instalment 4 - £67,000
The first instalment (04/2025) has been used in line with the project plan. Instalments two and three will be used to pay for work in progress as the building development project evolves.
Each instalment will have individual repayment schedules with all the three schedules timed for the whole investment to be repaid in line with the agreement. (10 years). A three-month capital repayment holiday covers the first three months of the repayment schedule.
Revenue
The revenue model is based on providing dental services to the local community. Additionally, there is a subscription model in place where patients pay a fee to remain registered with the practice, ensuring continuous access to dental care.
Impact
The impact of Brilliant Healthy Smiles on the Bradford community is expected to be substantial, particularly in improving access to dental care for the unregistered population. With 57% of Bradford's residents lacking access to an NHS dentist, this initiative will provide essential dental services to approximately 319,314 individuals who are currently underserved.
By offering treatments at NHS pricing, the practice will make dental care affordable and accessible, thereby addressing a significant dental health disparity within the community. The project aims to alleviate the pain and discomfort experienced by those who have been unable to find a dentist, enhancing their overall well-being and quality of life.
Additionally, the initiative will likely reduce the strain on the NHS by providing an alternative for dental care, potentially decreasing the number of emergency visits.
Overall, Brilliant Healthy Smiles is poised to make a meaningful difference in the lives of Bradford residents by ensuring they have access to the dental care they need.
This product itself was developed in collaboration with The Local Access Bradford District (LABD) programme and Impact Hub Yorkshire. The new interest-free loan will support social impact makers within the local area to access investment to scale up and grow. Its purpose is to create investment models that better reflect the realities and needs of communities.
Designed with ethical finance principles at its core, it’s fully Shariah-compliant and open to all. You can read more about the product, here.
Through this new type of investment loan we are prepared to lend organisations up to £250,000 to help them unlock potential to deliver social impact. This may take the form of taking on an asset, renovating an asset, or bringing in a team to help take on new work. Its purpose is to remove the financial barriers to enable businesses to generate an income through doing good. The product functions as a zero-interest, unsecured loan tailored to the social economy and is compliant with Islamic finance principles but it is open to all.
Dr Fraz is very proactive in making a positive difference for people and Brilliant Healthy Smiles captures this in full. There is every confidence across the stakeholders involved within this journey that Dr Fraz and Brilliant Healthy Smiles will be successful and in time with a rollout of further practices more beneficiaries in need of dental care will be reached. Key Fund is very passionate about helping Dr Fraz address the identified big gap in the market, particularly to help BAME communities who otherwise wouldn’t be able to access a dentist.