Mark qualified at Sheffield in 1997, followed by an initial spell practising in a hospital for two years. He has been practising in private dentistry since 2000, first in Tamworth, now at Hughes & Owen Dental Care, Swadlincote. Married to Clare Watson, a dentist in the same practice, he is a family man and when not at work, can be found mountain biking or road cycling.

Katie qualified from Birmingham in 1986 and spent two years working in hospitals before moving into general practice. She has been working at Hughes & Owen Dental Care since 1997. Katie has been on a number of postgraduate courses and likes to keep up-to-date with new developments in dentistry.

Clare qualified at Sheffield Dental School in 1997 and has worked at Hughes& Owen Dental Care in Swadlincote since then. Clare is now also the Regional Clinical lead for the North West of England. She has always enjoyed all aspects of general dentistry, especially the care of nervous patients.

Within the local community at schools and pre schools, for the last 16 years Clare has provided oral health education including activities to engage with the children and promote oral health. Clare also plays a key role in the training and mentoring of dental nurses within our practice.

Outside of work Clare enjoys doing Pilates and yoga and is also a keen runner and has completed two half marathons for prostate UK. She also enjoys going on walks with her husband Mark, 3 children and 3 dogs.

Jon qualified in Leeds in 2001 and completed his vocational training in York. In 2005 he completed the certificate in restorative dentistry at the Eastman Dental Institute in London and enjoys all aspects of general dentistry. Jon joined Hughes & Owen Dental Care in April 2009 and is based at the Swadlincote practice. Outside of dentistry he enjoys watching football and playing badminton.

Eleanor qualified from Leeds Dental Institute in 2004. Since then she has worked in both NHS and private practices in Leeds before returning to the Midlands in 2012. She has an interest in prosthetic dentistry and the care of anxious patients. Eleanor is based at the Swadlincote practice one day a week. When she is not at work she enjoys gardening and cooking, as well as running around after her three young children.

Bal qualified from Guys, Kings and St. Thomas’ Dental School at the University of London in 2008. Following this he went on to gain further experience working in hospital dentistry for a number of years in consultant led departments. Specifically, at King’s College Dental Institute, London, in Oral Surgery, Oral Medicine, Special Care and Sedation, Paediatrics and Restorative Dentistry and at Bristol in Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery.

This gives him a broad range of knowledge and experience to deal with more advanced restorative procedures which he manages in private practice in Birmingham. Specifically, Bal has a special interest in Endodontics, having completed an MSc in Endodontics (Masters degree in root canal treatments) and accepts referrals for all types of cases in this field in a number of practices across the midlands.

Bal passed exams to gain Membership of the Joint Dental Faculties of the Royal College of Surgeons, London in 2010 and Membership of the Faculty of Dental Surgery of the Royal College of Surgeons, Edinburgh in 2011. As well as being a member of the British Endodontic Society, he is also a member of the Society for the Advancement of Anaesthesia in Dentistry (SAAD) and has considerable experience in treating anxious and nervous patients priding himself on patients saying he has a gentle touch and calm demeanour.

Bal is extremely passionate about providing comfortable, high quality treatment and care to his patients. His focus is on further education and is dedicating his clinical time to patient care in the field of endodontics.

Edel joined the team on November 3rd 2022.

Edel graduated from University College Cork in 2008. She has worked in general practice since qualifying, enjoying five years in Edinburgh followed by six years in London before settling in Staffordshire in 2019. She enjoys the ever-evolving nature of general dentistry and the variety that it brings.

Outside of work Edel enjoys yoga, reading and regular trips to catch up with friends and family in Ireland.