King's College London

Beyond The Smile was the theme for this year’s lecture programme, with five speakers giving talks over two days. It was also Charlie Spedding’s second – and final – year as President of the Association. This year saw the first joint programme with the KCL Dental Hygienist/Therapist’s Section meeting, too.

Neoss were the main sponsors of the weekend. They also sponsored the dinner and the workshop on Saturday afternoon. Other sponsors included BDA, Dentsply, Haleon, Phillips and Wesleyan. The goodie bags, provided by Elemis, were also a delightful addition for every guest.

Opening Lectures

Charlie Spedding and Professor Michael Escudier, Executive Dean of our Faculty of Dentistry, Oral & Craniofacial Sciences, opened the lectures.

Professor Ama Johal, a Consultant Orthodontist and Academic Lead Orthodontics at the Institute of Dentistry at Queen Mary University, spoke about Restoring Sleep and Quality of Life: All in a Day’s Work. This fantastic and informative lecture captivated everyone who witnessed it.

Professor Peter Brennan, Consultant Maxillofacial-Facial Surgeon at Portsmouth Hospitals University NHS Trust, followed. His two-part lecture, Understanding and Applying Human Factors to Improve Patient Safety, Teamwork and Wellbeing in Dentistry was another superb talk, which entertained while imparting important knowledge with wit and humour. Peter has also just received the highest award from the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh, a Fellowship of the Royal College of Surgeons Ad Hominem, for his amazing work on Human Factors.

Reunions and relaxation

The Staff and Alumni Drinks Reception and Annual Dental Dinner commenced that evening at 19.00. It was held once more at the Hilton Tower Bridge Hotel in Tooley Street. There were seven reunion groups, comprising graduates from 1970, 1991, 1993 and 1999.

It was also the 30th reunion for 1995 graduates, while graduates from 2000 and 2005 celebrated their 20th and 25th anniversaries respectively. A good time was had by all.

Alex Groves from the Alumni Office organised the dinner expertly, while Tomos Lavery (Dentistry, 2014) and Ben Smith entertained once more with their beautiful voices. Jing Yuan Chan from Guy’s Gazette and Ian Larkham from the Philanthropy & Alumni team were also in attendance.

Alumni Awards

The winner of the Alumnus of the Year Award was also announced. This went to Dr Pepe Shirlaw MBE, an Honorary Senior Lecturer and Honorary Reader in the King’s College London Dental Institute. She has also had a distinguished career as a practitioner, and as a member of several distinguished boards and committees. Professor Gordon Proctor was awarded the Distinguished Alumnus Award.

Day two lectures

Mr Anish Shah, a Consultant Oral Surgeon and ALS Instructor (Resus UK), opened day two with an incredible keynote speech, given as this year’s Rod Cawson Lecture. Facing Oral Medicine offered attendees a slick revision of oro-facial lesions and manifestations of systemic disease with mnemonics, and offered useful tips and aide memoires.

The AGM and Dean’s address followed, with Charlie handing over the Chain of Office to the incoming President, Dr Jonathan Turner, who will hold the position for the next two years. Sadly, the deaths of Dr David Brown and Dr Meg Skelly were also announced during the AGM.

Dr Federica Amati, Head Nutritionist Zoe, and Medical Scientist at Imperial College London and at King’s College London, delivered the lecture, Why You Need to Care About Gut Health. Dr Amati delivered enlightening information regarding mode of birth, early feeding, diet, antibiotics and xenobiotics, and the damaging effects of ultra-processed foods.

Following on this, Professor Mark Ide, Hon Consultant Periodontology and Restorative Dentistry, and Associate Dean for Postgraduate Taught Education at King’s, gave the keynote Walter Herbert Lecture. Oral Health, Oral and Gut Microbiome and Systemic Outcomes was a beautifully presented talk with evidence-based research linking perfectly with Dr Amati’s presentation and also addressing the possible impacts of microbial changes in periodontal disease.

The Dean’s Lunch and Trade Fair followed, plus the Haptics session with Dr Melanie Nasseripour and Dr Jonathan Turner. Tours, along with the Neoss Workshop, commenced around 14.00.

The weekend then drew to a close.

The KCLKDAA weekend is always the first weekend in March. Dates for 2026 are 6-7 March, so please save the date.

The KCLDAA comprises graduates and staff from Guy’s Dental School, King’s Dental School, The Royal Dental Hospital School and UMDS. We still need contact email addresses from Alumni in order to spread the word. Please send your details to forever@kcl.ac.uk.