today at six, the vast majority of dental practices in the uk are now refusing to accept new patients for nhs treatment. we talk to some of those in urgent need of nhs treatment, but the service just isn't available. my my teeth are falling out, i need help, but every time i do it's like, sorry, we are not taking on nhs patients any more. across the uk, nine out of ten dental practices report that they're not in a position to take on any more nhs patients. the problem is that for most dentists _ the problem is that for most dentists the service they want to offer_ dentists the service they want to offer their— dentists the service they want to offer their patients is not readily available — offer their patients is not readily available if they continue and stay

in the _ available if they continue and stay in the nhs. we'll have the latest on a comprehensive survey of dental practices conducted by the bbc. also on the programme... following the anger over the strip—searching of a teenage schoolgirl it's revealed that hundreds of other children have been strip—searched by the metropolitan police. ryan giggs, the former manchester united star, attends court to deny a charge of coercive behaviour and assaulting his former girlfriend. and i'm here at the alexander stadium in birmingham where the final day of the commonwealth games is due to end with a musical celebration of the city after more golds for the home nations. england came second in the medal table with 57 gold medals. they included a spectacular performance by england's noah williams and 17—year—old andrea spendolini—sireix in the diving mixed synchronised iom platform final. and coming up on the bbc news channel... england finish second in the medals table as declanjames and james willstrop bring home gold

in the squash. welcome to bbc news at six. we start with the severe shortage of nhs dentists in the uk, with nine out of ten practices refusing to accept any new adult patients for health service treatment. the british dental association says nhs dentistry is at a "tipping point". the findings are from a comprehensive bbc investigation of more than 7,000 practices which shows that some areas are "deserts" for nhs dental services. of those the bbc managed to talk to 90% said they were no longer taking on any new adult patients. while 80% were no longer willing or able to accept children under 16 as nhs patients.

and only a quarter said they had a waiting list to become an nhs patient and for most of those, the wait was at least a year. for the latest on the growing crisis in nhs dental care, this report by our health correspondent dominic hughes. i haven't had a dentist for seven years, and my teeth have been coming out. the voices of people who desperately need help forced to take extraordinary measures. i made my own dentures at home every week. the nhs dentists who wonder how long they can carry on. it's the first time in a long, i long time in my professional career that i've ever had to turn people away. - bbc research reveals the extent to which nhs dentistry is in crisis, and the impact that's having on the lives of thousands of people. it's not like you have fillings or decay in the teeth themselves. no, my teeth are all relatively fine. it's all this mess is what is going

on below the gum line. terrible gum disease is wrecking danielle's teeth. as her gums recede, teeth that were perfectly healthy start to become wobbly. eventually, the teeth becomes so loose, danielle can just pull them out. i'm 42 years old and i can't eat and i can't drink, and i'm on painkillers every day. i'm not a 90—year—old woman. this shouldn't be happening to me now. danielle lives in bury st edmunds in suffolk, and she can't find an nhs dentist who can help her. there are no dentists. i'd love to be able to ring a dentist up and say, "my teeth are falling out, i need help." but every time i do, it's like, "sorry, we're not taking on nhs patients any more." the british dental association described towns like bury st edmunds as "dental deserts". there are simply no dental practices in this area offering places

to new nhs patients, and that is having a real and profound impact on the lives of many people. at this emergency clinic run by the university of newcastle's dental school, dozens of people experiencing excruciating tooth pain have come for help. definitely a good one for the tooth fairy, this, you know. many of them share the same story. i phoned my dentist this morning at 9.00 to get an appointment. they said i'd been de—registered and there was no emergencies left. i wasn't sort of aware they could just take you off the list. we're no longer taking nhs patients. we're only taking private patients. i can't say it was frustrating, i was absolutely foaming. i hello, boys dental surgery. but dentists themselves blame an nhs contract that dates back to 2006, which they say simply doesn't pay them properly for the work they do. it'll makes a little noise, just like that. ian is still seeing patients, but he says many of his colleagues are being driven out

of nhs dentistry. they've been trying to hang on to a broken system for such a long time. the problem is, that for most dentists, the service they want to offer their patients is not readily available if they continue and stay in the nhs. and there are warnings that time is running out. i think nhs dentistry is in significant trouble. i think it's premature to say we're witnessing the death of it, but in certain areas it's on life support. there doesn't seem to be any real appetite for the sort of big structural and investment decisions that are required to fix nhs dentistry. i suspect we will continue to see a drift to the private sector. i measure them out. caroline has been forced to take desperate measures. it's not pretty. there you go. crowns fitted on her teeth fell out, so unable to access help, she uses modelling plastic

to fashion her own dentures. squeeze it into place and hope it fits, and it looks better than nothing. that's not what i want to do, i'd rather have teeth. but it's better than going out with... it... it means i can smile at people a little bit from a distance, and not look too freaky, rather than smile at people and them go... ew! i hope. i think. there have been some small changes to the nhs contract for dentists in england and wales, and plans are being developed in northern ireland. but there's no quick fix for nhs dentistry, and thousands of people will continue to struggle to access the care they need. more from dominic in a moment, but a quick look at the map, which tells its own story. the darker the colour, the greater the problem, because those are the areas with the highest proportion

of dental practices not taking any new adult patients on the nhs. there's more detail about your own area on the bbc website. so let'sjoin dominic in salford. the british dental association says nhs dentistry is at a "tipping point". what's gone so badly wrong? what has led to this particular crunch? , , , , crunch? there is pretty broad agreement — crunch? there is pretty broad agreement i _ crunch? there is pretty broad agreement i think _ crunch? there is pretty broad agreement i think that - crunch? there is pretty broad agreement i think that this i crunch? there is pretty broad - agreement i think that this problem over access to dentistry dates back to that 2006 nhs contract. it was pretty unpopular when it was first introduced amongst dentists. it contains strange anomalies, like for example a dentist would get paid the same for doing one filling as he did for ten. that is not going to work

for ten. that is not going to work for a dentist. then we had 2010 and austerity and the budgets were squeezed and things seem to have got significantly worse since then. nhs england were asked by the government in england to look again at that contract and particularly the issues around access. similar plans are being considered in wales and northern ireland. in scotland where the system is different, the government says 95% of the population are registered with an nhs dentist. as i said in my piece, there have been some small changes made to that contract and it is early stages, an ongoing process, but crucially so far in the proposals there have been no announcements of extra funding for dentistry anywhere in the uk. that raises this question about whether there is the political will to bring about the kind of fundamental reforms that will fix nhs dentistry. we know there are lots of people who have shown they are willing to pay

for private care, but there are many thousands of people for whom that is not an option, some of whom we spoke to for our peace today, and for them they still desperately need that care. . , ., and for more on that story you can watch the documentary disappearing dentists, which is on bbc iplayer whenever you want it. hundreds of children were strip—searched by the metropolitan police between 2018 and 2020, some as young as ten years old. the data comes from the children's commissioner for england. in most of the cases the children were released without any further action. in almost a quarter of cases no appropriate adult was present. most of the children were boys and over half of them were black. the data was collected after the strip search of a 15—year—old schoolgirl known as child 0. 0ur correspondent celestina 0lulode has the story.

chanting. the strip—search of child 0, a 15—year—old black schoolgirl, sparked nationwide rallies. wrongly accused of carrying cannabis, the schoolgirl was on her period when she was strip—searched by police. a safeguarding review said racism was likely to have been a factor. today's report shows child 0 is not the only child to be strip—searched without an appropriate adult present. basically, a child has to undress, and their intimate parts are visually inspected. they need an appropriate adult there. that's really intrusive, and we know from child q's experience that the aftermath of that is equally painful. today's report says that 650 children aged between 10 and 17 were strip—searched between 2018 and 2020. in almost a quarter of these cases,

no appropriate adult was present. the vast majority of the search is where on blaze, and 58% of the vast majority of the search is were on boys, and 58% of all the children strip—searched were black. some people are calling for change. organisations have been trying to tell the world that it is impacting children. young people have been trying to tell the world that it's been impacting their mental health. again, i think now, moving forward, how can we advocate for young people? how can he campaign to say that we must and all strip searches? in a statement, the metropolitan police said it understood the lasting impact strip searches can have but, it added, there are occasions when such searches are very necessary to prevent harm to children who may be exploited by gangs, county lines and drug dealers. the force says it has already made changes and introduced new measures to existing guidelines, reinforcing the need

for the presence of an appropriate adult. the children's commissioner says she will write to all the police forces in england asking them for they strip—search data. celestina 0lulode, bbc news. the former manchester united footballer ryan giggs has appeared in court accused of assaulting and controlling his former girlfriend. he's pleaded not guilty to all the charges. 0ur sports correspondent laura scott is at the court in manchester with the latest. ryan giggs was perceived as one of the best footballers in the world in his heyday and today he was in manchester for a his heyday and today he was in manchesterfor a much more serious matter, one that has already impacted his career. this trial was due to take place injanuary but was delayed because of the backfill of cases caused by the pandemic and because of asbestos in manchester's

maine crown court. but after two years it got under way here today. the most decorated player in manchester united's history, ryan giggs, arriving at court in manchester this morning flanked by lawyers. inside, thejury sworn in to try him on three counts of domestic abuse — which he denies — were told to ignore his profile as one of the most glittering footballers of his generation. they were also asked if they had any personal connection to a number of people who may feature in the trial, including sir alex ferguson and gary neville. opening the prosecution's case, peter wright qc said that while giggs had shown abundant skills on the pitch, for which he was idolised, off it there was an uglier, more sinister side to his character. the court heard that giggs had subjected his ex—girlfriend, kate greville, to a litany of physical and psychological abuse, which was systematic and at times violent, that over the three year period between 2017—2020, he was said to be controlling and coercive, and deliberately sought to gaslight her

into doubting herself. this culminated, the prosecution said, in an incident on the 1st of november 2020, when he haed butted miss greville, causing her a swollen and bloodied lip, and elbowed her younger sister. the defence counsel, chris daw qc, said giggs never once used unlawful violence, and that accusations of assault were based on distortion, exaggeration and lies. the trial is expected to continue for the next two weeks. laura scott, bbc news, manchester. a child has died following an explosion at a house in south london. three other people were also injured in the blast in thornton heath. 0ur correspondent matt cole has the latest. yesterday, this was a terraced house. the explosion, just after seven this morning was so powerful, it reduced to rubble, blew in window of neighbouring houses

iwas in bed, and i said i heard this explosion, i didn't think anything of it, other neighbours could feel it. my neighbours actually felt it, but i didn't. so, so, sad. it could be anyone. i'm grieved. within minutes, emergency services were at the scene, using specialist rescue crews to search through the debris. sadly, a child was pronounced dead at the scene. our thoughts are with their family, friends and the local community at this time. the police say the child who died was four years old. those taken to hospital are said to have life—threatening injuries. people here say they smelled gas in recent weeks, but fire officers say they cannot confirm that a leak was responsible for the blast. a vast cordon remains around the site this evening with the local authority beginning efforts to assess the wider damage.

it's not clear if or when those forced to leave their homes affected by the blast will be able to return. the fire service is maintaining a presence here tonight but they have handed over investigations to the metropolitan police, whose officers will try to establish the cause of the fatal explosion. the dead girl's next of kip have been inform and it is understood tonight specialist officers are offering them support. our top story this evening. the vast majority of dental practices in the uk are now refusing to accept new patients for nhs treatment. and the last original cast member of radio 4's popular drama the archers, june spencer, has retired at the age of 103. coming up in sportsday on the bbc news channel. 30 years since the launch of the premier league, we hear from alan shearer,

on the landmark anniversary. the city of birmingham is gearing up for the finale of the commonwealth games with the closing ceremony getting under way at the alexander stadium this evening. more than a,500 athletes from 72 nations and territories have competed in 25 sports. the top of the final medals table looks like this. australia lead the way with 67 golds and 178 medals overall. england a very close second with 176 medals. scotland finished in sixth position, their best games since glasgow in 2014. wales are in eighth place and northern ireland in eleventh. let's join my colleague reeta chakrabartri who's in birmigham on this final evening.

birmingham 2022 has, by all accounts, been a highly successful commonwealth games. ticket sales which were expected at around 1.2 million have exceeded 1.5 million, helped by the sunshine no doubt, but also by the sheer feel—good factor that has permeated this event. tonight sees the closing ceremony here at alexander stadium, and with it, the inevitable questions about the impact of the games on the region and in the future. our sports editor dan roan looks at today's final events and the legacy the games will leave. birmingham has savoured its moment in the sun. with almost 1900 medals at stake... northern ireland. ..there has been no shortage of sporting highlights. an incredible race. the hosts embracing an event that raised spirits... yes! ..changed perfections. standing ovation after a thrilling gold medal match.

and was enjoyed by record numbers for a commonwealth games held in the uk. 0ne former olympic champion told me her home city had done the country proud. i hope people remember it for being the fun, friendly, warm and welcoming city, with high class performers throughout the venue. we have seen some phenomenal performances, and i think definitely it surpassed expectations. the final day of action saw an all english final in the squash. unbelievable drama. james willstrop and declanjames winning gold in the men's doubles. scotland, meanwhile, enjoying success in the diving. james heatley and grace reid victorious in the synchronised three metre spring board final. and 17—year—old andrea spendolini—sirieix won her third medal here, with a second gold for england alongside noah williams. i am just really pleased with how we executed our dives and our synchro, and it has been really, really fun. in a packed sports calendar,

a host of top stars were absent. jamaican sprint world champion shelly—ann fraser—pryce and shericka jackson among those prioritising other events. gold to duncan scott. and even some of those who enjoyed success here are concerned by the quality of competition. there is definitely room to argue it is lacking in depth, for sure. especially in, you know, looking at some of the heats. i think has maybe always been the thing with the commonwealth games, because it is such a select few nations, you can get some depth in some places, but in others it really disappears. but that didn't seem to matter to the crowds that flocked here, and you didn't need a ticket to feel part of it. the true legacy of birmingham 2022 will only become clear in the future of course, but already there seems little doubt that the success of this event has reinforced britain's status as a host of major events, and reminded us of the sheer appetite for such sporting occasions, as these scenes show. the games cost £800 million to stage, but those in charge here insist it was worth it.

we have already got lots of legacy, whether it is new facilities, transport links, jobs, business investment, but it is also true to say we have shown the world we can host really high profile events. if there was another olympic bid from the uk, it would definitely have to come from outside london, and we, of course, now must be in pole position. and at a time when this event has struggled to find new hosts, birmingham may have helped. this games has absolutely revitalised what people think about the commonwealth games movement. we have 72 members, and the number of people who have been talking about it it's time for them to put their hand up and bid. a lot of that has been stimulated by what they have seen and experienced while they spent their time in birmingham. featuring athletes of all ages... scotland have won the gold. ..and from all corners of the commonwealth. # i want to break free. above all, perhaps, birmingham seemed to encapsulate the fun and enjoyment that sport can provide. an event striving to remain relevant mayjust have been given fresh meaning.

and dan is with me now. as you have pointed out the games are thought a real success but there is concern about major events like this, are they worth the money? so what has these games legacy been and what does it mean for the future? it is worth does it mean for the future? it 3 worth remembering, that birmingham had half the time that most host cities usually have, after it had to step in following the withdrawal of the original host city durban, so i think given that, given the pandemic which had to be navigated, organiser also be delighted with shop successful has gone. but you are right. this was the most expensive sports vent hosted sense london 2012. 800 million as we said. so given that, given this is an event that for some remains something of an outdated legacy of empire, there will be questions for years to come about its legacy, how exactly will it benefit the lives of local communities? will it make them more active, will it strengthen ties with the commonwealth at a time of

renewed focus on its future, there was a lot at stake here. the organisers will point to the fact it was inclusive, progressive, more women's events than men's new sports like women's cricket, the biggest integrated parasports in the history of the event. they will refer to the way the city embraced the games and the way that people will look at birmingham, in a different light, yes, it had to share the limelight with the women's euros for some of the games but i think in years to come, at a time that is critical for the commonwealth games, there is a sense that it may have breathed new life into it and plan perhaps whence we look back the event will have a lot to thank birmingham for. thank ou ve lot to thank birmingham for. thank you very much _ lot to thank birmingham for. thank you very much dan. _ you very much dan. they have been gearing up all afternoon behind me for the closing ceremony which is billed as a music extravaganza with acts ical like beverley knight, dexy�*s midnight runners and ub o a0. then the baton

is pass to australia, there will be lots of discussion as dan was saying about their lasting impact and legacy but for now in birmingham, it is the feel—good factor that reigns supreme. thank you. now a look at some other stories making the news today. the last original cast member of radio a's popular drama the archers has retired at the age of 103. june spencer has played the formidable peggy woolley for most of the past 70 years. 0ur media and arts correspondent david sillito assesses at her contribution. music: theme from the archers. whenjune spencerjoined a new drama called the archers in 1951, she had no idea what it would become. we were given a three—month contract, and we thought "oh, well, it's only a sort of small thing, we can do lots of other work." it was an interesting littlejob, yes. i hope you don't mind me saying this, but you don't seem quite yourself.

72 years later, she finally saying goodbye to ambridge and her character, peggy. i've had my say, i should get on with the cleaning. yes, i rather think you should. over the yearjune has seen her character gradually developed, from left wing new arrival to wealthy matriarch. and for fellow cast members, their feelings today? devastated, actually. i mean, it's been such a privilege to play her daughter for 22 years, a slightly wayward daughter for 22 years, and i amjust devastated i won't have any more scenes with her. and i'm going to feel quite bereft for my character but also bereft for me, that i won't be sharing the studio withjune any more. # happy birthday to you. in 2019, june celebrated her 100th birthday, still a member of the archers cast, but she feels it is now finally time for peggy to bow out, a mere 72 years since she first arrived in ambridge. david sillito, bbc news.

another heatwave is forecast this week for parts of the uk, amid calls for more hosepipe bans to be imposed. yesterday, the environment secretary at westminster urged water companies to follow the bans already in place. restrictions for southern water customers in much of hampshire and the isle of wight came into force last friday. about one million south—east water customers in kent and sussex will face measures from this friday. welsh water has announced a ban covering pembrokeshire and part of carmathenshire, starting on august 19th. other water companies across the uk say they are monitoring water levels closely. let's join our correspondent ellie price at a reservoir in kent. a0. then the baton is pass to australia, there will be lots of discussion as dan was saying about

their lasting impact and legacy but for now in birmingham, it is the feel—good factor that reigns supreme. thank you. ellie. thankyou. ellie. ., ., ellie. thanks huw. here at the reservoir _ ellie. thanks huw. here at the reservoir we — ellie. thanks huw. here at the reservoir we are _ ellie. thanks huw. here at the reservoir we are at _ ellie. thanks huw. here at the reservoir we are at full- ellie. thanks huw. here at the reservoir we are at full a - ellie. thanks huw. here at the reservoir we are at full a cap i ellie. thanks huw. here at the reservoir we are at full a cap o| reservoir we are at full a cap o —— if we were at full capacity the water would be above my head. the capacity now is less than 60%, bearing in mind it is 30 metres deep in the middle. this is a reservoir that provides customers of south—east and those are the people who will face that hosepipe ban from friday on wards, the big question, are the other water companies likely to follow suit the quick answer is no, not yet, we spoke to a number of the big water companies in the south who say they have no plans but they urge customers to be careful. it is largely because they draw their reserves from ground water which broadly speaking are holding up. we have been speaking to people here about whether they mind the ban at their —— they are facing, they say they are willing to do their bit. there is some anger at the perceived wastage of water and these were the

scenes in islington earlier when a water pipe, main burst, causing disruption and some flooding. there is likely to be more demand on our water over the coming days because there is going to be another heat wave, in fact there has been another health, heat health watching issued from lunchtime tomorrow until saturday which is, because those temperatures are likely to remain in the �*30s. still no sign of any rain. 0k, ellie, thank you. sorry the connection wasn't great, but we heard most of what she had to say. time for a look at the weather. here's darren bett. i , more of the same almost, across the uk, i am sure many people will be in search of the beach, if they possibly can, in order to cool down a little bit. here in pembrokeshire the temperatures were in the mid 20s today, it has been hotter elsewhere in the uk and the heat is going to continue to build over the coming few day, heat wave developing,

across much of the uk, spreading into much of the uk, of course with that heat it will be dry as well. most of the rain since the first of july has been in the far north—west of scotland and we have some rain here this evening, otherwise it is dry clear sky, temperatures in rural parts of northern england could dip way to eight or nine, but it will heat up quickly in the sunshine. got a bit more cloud for scotland and a few spot of rain to start the day, but that will get pushed away, we will have sunshine more widely in scotland. sunny day for northern ireland and england and wales, again with light winds, some sea breeze, temperatures lifting across many inland areas and we are getting close to 30 degrees in london and heading into the midlands as well. the heat is building underneath another area of high pressure, this has been the story of the summer, we still have weather fronts flirting with the far north—west of scotland but the heat is building and we are drawing in heat from europe, so temperatures will rise quickly across the uk on wednesday, it is

across the uk on wednesday, it is across the uk on wednesday, it is across the midlands, southern england