Plans to install a temporary mobile dental unit at Ramsey Cottage Hospital are recommended for approval.

The unit, mounted on an lorry trailer, is planned to be in place for up to 18 months while protracted refurbishment works at the hospital are completed.

It will provide a base for Smile Dental Care which has been left without a permanent base since the refurbishment works began.

In its application (26/00424/B), Manx Care said the unit was required on a temporary basis to address the ‘unforeseen closure’ of Ramsey District Cottage Hospital for extensive refurbishment.

It pointed out that this has left the north of the island without NHS dental services since December 2025.

Initial assessments indicated that the Cottage Hospital could be refurbished and made operationally safe by April 2026.

But subsequent investigations identified other significant defects which have resulted in delays to the reinstatement of some services.

The application is recommended for approval when its goes before the planning committee on Monday.

A spokesperson for Manx Care said: ‘The intention is for Smile Dental Care to resume services and relocate to the mobile unit. Operational details are still being worked through.’

Smile Dental Care has initially moved its services to the Hillside Dental Practice in Douglas but then relocated again in January, to the Community Dental Service.

But in April Smile announced it was withdrawing from there, citing ‘multiple operational issues’ it said made it ‘unsafe to treat patients’.

It said it would remain closed until it could return to its base in Ramsey.

An independent survey concluded the cottage hospital requires almost £4m of immediate investment in roofs, heating, water systems, fire safety and doors and windows.

A further £2.5m will need to be spent over 10 years to replace ventilation, electrical wiring and communications infrastructure.

Refurbishment works began in October. The minor injuries unit reopened on May 18.