Following a multi-million pound minority investment from BGF in February 2022, the family owned Scottish firm further increased its market share, acquiring five clinics in the last twelve months, taking its total to 17 across Scotland.

Ms Hood will be based in the group’s Glasgow headquarters. The appointment comes as Scottish Dental Care seeks to capitalise on continued demand for quality NHS and private dentistry.

Further acquisitions are already in place for the first quarter of the year as the company looks expand its geographic footprint within Scotland.

Ms Hood joins from her previous role as chief executive at the hospitality company Focus Hotels Management Limited — a white-label brand fronting a number of high profile hotel franchises — bringing over 24 years of senior hospitality leadership experience.

Appointing Ms Hood as CEO enables the director of dentistry Philip Friel to focus on strategic clinical matters and expanding the company’s dental services, while co-founding brother Christopher Friel will continue to focus his expertise on acquisitions and group legal services in his role as the mergers and acquisitions director.

Philip Friel said: “Lynn is a fantastic leader, and her appointment is designed to drive growth and overall performance at Scottish Dental Care into 2023 and beyond.

“Now was the right time to expand our leadership team as we scale at pace and look to capitalise on a range of exciting opportunities. Lynn’s breadth of expertise made her the perfect candidate to further grow the group’s practices and the Advanced Dentistry brand.”

Christopher Friel added: “My brother Philip and I started Scottish Dental Care with a vision to lead dental innovation and services in Scotland.

“Lynn brings a wealth of senior hospitality management experience and is the perfect leader to build on the strong trajectory set in 2022.”

Ms Hood said: “Scottish Dental Care is already a leader within Scottish dentistry, and its ambitious growth plan and patient-centric approach were apparent from the outset.

“I now look forward to working with Philip, Christopher and the wider team to harness Scottish Dental Care’s full potential to ensure Scottish Dental Care is at the forefront of Scottish dentistry in 2023 and beyond.

“I believe in developing a culture where people love their work, and Philip and Christopher are completely aligned with that, which was a key attraction for me. In addition to growing the business I also want to continue that important legacy.”