The Orthodontic Technicians Association (UK) (OTA) is the

professional body A professional association (also called a professional body, professional organization, or professional society) usually seeks to further a particular profession, the interests of individuals and organisations engaged in that profession, and the ...

that represents orthodontic technologists, based in the United Kingdom.

History

In 1971, orthodontic technicians based at

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

teaching hospitals A teaching hospital is a hospital or medical centre that provides medical education and training to future and current health professionals. Teaching hospitals are almost always affiliated with one or more universities and are often co-located ...

began holding meetings to discuss the regulation of orthodontic technology and the ways in which standards in the profession could be improved. Bert Aldridge, laboratory manager at

Great Ormond Street Hospital Great Ormond Street Hospital (informally GOSH or Great Ormond Street, formerly the Hospital for Sick Children) is a children's hospital located in the Bloomsbury area of the London Borough of Camden, and a part of Great Ormond Street Hospital ...

in London, and Len Bradshaw, his counterpart at Kings College Dental School, discussed the possibility of forming an association for orthodontic technicians. Aldridge and Bradshaw were also lecturers in orthodontics at South London College on

Tooley Street Tooley Street is a road in central and south London connecting London Bridge to St Saviour's Dock; it runs past Tower Bridge on the Southwark/Bermondsey side of the River Thames, and forms part of the A200 road. (.) St Olave The earliest na ...

, which has since merged with Brixton College of Further Education and Vauxhall College to become

Lambeth College Lambeth College is a further education college in the London Borough of Lambeth. It was formed in 1992 from three former institutions – Vauxhall College of Building and Further Education, Brixton College of Further Education, and South London ...

(the Tooley Street campus moved to

Clapham Clapham () is a suburb in south west London, England, lying mostly within the London Borough of Lambeth, but with some areas (most notably Clapham Common) extending into the neighbouring London Borough of Wandsworth. History Early history T ...

in 2004). Aldridge wrote to the other orthodontic technicians working at London teaching hospitals and invited them to attend a meeting on Monday, 11 October 1971 at 6.00 pm at Great Ormond Street Hospital to discuss the possibility of forming an association. Thirteen orthodontic technicians attended the meeting, and it was agreed that such an association should be formed. During the meetings that followed, the constitution was written, and the first conference was planned, which was held in April 1973, at

University College Hospital University College Hospital (UCH) is a teaching hospital in the Fitzrovia area of the London Borough of Camden, England. The hospital, which was founded as the North London Hospital in 1834, is closely associated with University College London ...

in London. Letters with details of the conference were sent out to all orthodontic departments throughout the United Kingdom.

Aims and objectives

The aims and objectives of the association remain close to those of its founders.

Membership

Membership benefits

*Full access to the OTA website and

Virtual Learning Environment A virtual learning environment (VLE) in educational technology is a web-based platform for the digital aspects of courses of study, usually within educational institutions. They present resources, activities, and interactions within a course stru ...

(VLE). *Subscriptions to ''OTA News'', the OTA newsletter and ''BOS News'', the newsletter of the

British Orthodontic Society The British Orthodontic Society (BOS) is a medical association for orthodontists in England. It publishes the '' Journal of Orthodontics''. The British Orthodontic society represents all orthodontists and dentists carrying out orthodontics ...

(BOS). *Discounted subscription rate for the '' Journal of Orthodontics''. *Discounted rates for the Dental Professionals Conference (DPC) and British Orthodontic Conference (BOC). *Access to Dental Technology Showcase (DTS)

VIP A very important person or personage (VIP or V.I.P.) is a person who is accorded special privileges due to their high social status, influence or importance. The term was not common until sometime after World War 2 by RAF pilots. Examples inc ...

area.

OTA officials

President

The

president President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) *President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ful ...

is the Association's ceremonial head and is elected biennially by the Council. The position was created in 1974 and was first held by Professor Norman Robertson, who was professor of orthodontics at

Cardiff University , latin_name = , image_name = Shield of the University of Cardiff.svg , image_size = 150px , caption = Coat of arms of Cardiff University , motto = cy, Gwirionedd, Undod a Chytgord , mottoeng = Truth, Unity and Concord , established = 1 ...

. The current president is Bill Ip, consultant orthodontist at the

Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust is one of the Shelford Group of University Teaching Hospitals and an NHS Foundation Trust. It provides acute medical services in Newcastle upon Tyne, England, at Royal Victoria Infirmary and Fre ...

Council

The OTA Council is the governing body of the Association and is elected by the membership. The council was established in 1971, consisting of four executive officers (

Chair A chair is a type of seat, typically designed for one person and consisting of one or more legs, a flat or slightly angled seat and a back-rest. They may be made of wood, metal, or synthetic materials, and may be padded or upholstered in vario ...

Secretary A secretary, administrative professional, administrative assistant, executive assistant, administrative officer, administrative support specialist, clerk, military assistant, management assistant, office secretary, or personal assistant is a w ...

Treasurer A treasurer is the person responsible for running the treasury of an organization. The significant core functions of a corporate treasurer include cash and liquidity management, risk management, and corporate finance. Government The treasury o ...

and Membership Secretary) and up to six non-executive council members. At the Annual General Meeting on 12 March 2005 two more non-executive positions were created due to a steady increase in council duties, meaning that the council can be composed of a total of 12 council members.

OTA officials 2022–23

Representation

The OTA is represented at meetings with organisations such as the

British Standards Institution The British Standards Institution (BSI) is the national standards body of the United Kingdom. BSI produces technical standards on a wide range of products and services and also supplies certification and standards-related services to business ...

and the

General Dental Council The General Dental Council (GDC) is an organisation which regulates dental professionals in the United Kingdom. It keeps an up-to-date register of all qualified dentists and other dental care professionals such as: dental hygienists, dental ther ...

Logo and visual identity

The OTA logo has been a visual identity for the Association and its work since the 1970s in three distinct designs:

1971–89

The first logo was used for 18 years from 1971 to 1989 and was designed by Bert Aldridge. It consisted of an image of the base of a maxillary Angle's trimmed study model surrounded by an

annulus Annulus (or anulus) or annular indicates a ring- or donut-shaped area or structure. It may refer to: Human anatomy * ''Anulus fibrosus disci intervertebralis'', spinal structure * Annulus of Zinn, a.k.a. annular tendon or ''anulus tendineus com ...

with the words "ORTHODONTIC" and "TECHNICIANS" at the top and "ASSOCIATION" at the bottom, separated by dashes.

1989–2017

The second logo was used for 28 years from 1989 to 2017 and was designed by council members Vaughan Jones and Desmond Solomon. It depicts the letters "OTA " in uppercase with an

otter Otters are carnivorous mammals in the subfamily Lutrinae. The 13 extant otter species are all semiaquatic, aquatic, or marine, with diets based on fish and invertebrates. Lutrinae is a branch of the Mustelidae family, which also includes wea ...

, the OTA's

mascot A mascot is any human, animal, or object thought to bring luck, or anything used to represent a group with a common public identity, such as a school, professional sports team, society, military unit, or brand name. Mascots are also used as fi ...

, in the foreground. The annulus remained the same as for the first logo. The otter was chosen as the association's

because the initials OTA can be pronounced "otter."

2017–present

The third and current logo has been used since September 2017 and consists of a blue globe with a "

bite Biting is a common zoological behavior involving the active, rapid closing of the jaw around an object. This behavior is found in toothed animals such as mammals, reptiles, amphibians and fish, but can also exist in arthropods. Myocytic co ...

" removed from the left-hand side and the letters "OTA" in lowercase. File: Former OTA logo.JPG, 1971–1989:
The first logo File: OTA Logo 1984 - 2017.png, 1989–2017:
The second logo File: OTA Icon TP.png, 2017–present:
The third logo

Affiliate organisations

British Orthodontic Society

The OTA has had a close connection with the British Orthodontic Society (BOS) for much of its history. The BOS sponsor two awards for orthodontic technicians, which were launched in 2000 and 2003, and these are co-ordinated by the OTA. The affiliation with the BOS was finally formalised by an agreement in 2010 that gave increased benefits to members and meant that the Association now shared an official address with the BOS at 12 Bridewell Place in the

City of London The City of London is a city, ceremonial county and local government district that contains the historic centre and constitutes, alongside Canary Wharf, the primary central business district (CBD) of London. It constituted most of London fr ...

. These offices opened in 2006 and occupy two floors of a listed Victorian building near

St Paul's Cathedral St Paul's Cathedral is an Anglican cathedral in London and is the seat of the Bishop of London. The cathedral serves as the mother church of the Diocese of London. It is on Ludgate Hill at the highest point of the City of London and is a Grad ...

International affiliations

The 1990s saw the Association build links with a similar organisation based in (Germany), Gesellschaft für Kieferorthopädische Zahntechnik (GK; Society for Orthodontic Dental Technology), which was established in 1990. This relationship remains in place today and the OTA Chair with an accompanying ambassador from the OTA council represents the OTA at the annual GK Congress. The second decade of the 21st century has seen the OTA build links with their Italian and Polish counterparts, Accademia Italiana di Ortodonzia Tecnica, (AIOT; Italian Academy of Orthodontic Technology), ORTEC and Polskie Towarzystwo Techniki Ortodontycznej (PTTO; Polish Association for Orthodontic Technology).

Conference

Continuing professional development Professional development is learning to earn or maintain professional credentials such as academic degrees to formal coursework, attending conferences, and informal learning opportunities situated in practice. It has been described as intensive ...

(CPD) has been at the heart of what the OTA stands for, long before it became mandatory for UK dental technicians in 2008. The Association has held regular conferences since 1973.

OTA Annual Conference (1973–2014)

The first OTA conference (OTAC) was held at

, London in April 1973. The next three conferences were held in 1974, 1976 and 1978 in

Cardiff Cardiff (; cy, Caerdydd ) is the capital and largest city of Wales. It forms a principal area, officially known as the City and County of Cardiff ( cy, Dinas a Sir Caerdydd, links=no), and the city is the eleventh-largest in the United Kingd ...

, Manchester and

Bristol Bristol () is a city, ceremonial county and unitary authority in England. Situated on the River Avon, it is bordered by the ceremonial counties of Gloucestershire to the north and Somerset to the south. Bristol is the most populous city in ...

respectively. Conferences have become a regular occurrence for the Association since the 1980s, with meetings held in towns and cities including

Basingstoke Basingstoke ( ) is the largest town in the county of Hampshire. It is situated in south-central England and lies across a valley at the source of the River Loddon, at the far western edge of The North Downs. It is located north-east of Southa ...

Blackpool Blackpool is a seaside resort in Lancashire, England. Located on the North West England, northwest coast of England, it is the main settlement within the Borough of Blackpool, borough also called Blackpool. The town is by the Irish Sea, betw ...

Bournemouth Bournemouth () is a coastal resort town in the Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole council area of Dorset, England. At the 2011 census, the town had a population of 183,491, making it the largest town in Dorset. It is situated on the Southern ...

, Edinburgh,

Glasgow Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...

Gloucester Gloucester ( ) is a cathedral city and the county town of Gloucestershire in the South West of England. Gloucester lies on the River Severn, between the Cotswolds to the east and the Forest of Dean to the west, east of Monmouth and east ...

Luton Luton () is a town and unitary authority with borough status, in Bedfordshire, England. At the 2011 census, the Luton built-up area subdivision had a population of 211,228 and its built-up area, including the adjacent towns of Dunstable an ...

Milton Keynes Milton Keynes ( ) is a city and the largest settlement in Buckinghamshire, England, about north-west of London. At the 2021 Census, the population of its urban area was over . The River Great Ouse forms its northern boundary; a tributary ...

Newcastle Newcastle usually refers to: *Newcastle upon Tyne, a city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England *Newcastle-under-Lyme, a town in Staffordshire, England *Newcastle, New South Wales, a metropolitan area in Australia, named after Newcastle ...

Skipton Skipton (also known as Skipton-in-Craven) is a market town and civil parish in the Craven district of North Yorkshire, England. Historically in the East Division of Staincliffe Wapentake in the West Riding of Yorkshire, it is on the River Air ...

Southampton Southampton () is a port city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. It is located approximately south-west of London and west of Portsmouth. The city forms part of the South Hampshire built-up area, which also covers Po ...

Stirling Stirling (; sco, Stirlin; gd, Sruighlea ) is a city in central Scotland, northeast of Glasgow and north-west of Edinburgh. The market town, surrounded by rich farmland, grew up connecting the royal citadel, the medieval old town with its me ...

and

Windermere Windermere (sometimes tautology (language), tautologically called Windermere Lake to distinguish it from the nearby town of Windermere, Cumbria (town), Windermere) is the largest natural lake in England. More than 11 miles (18 km) in leng ...

OTA Annual Conference, co-located with the British Orthodontic Conference (2016–2017)

Following a

ballot A ballot is a device used to cast votes in an election and may be found as a piece of paper or a small ball used in secret voting. It was originally a small ball (see blackballing) used to record decisions made by voters in Italy around the 16t ...

of the OTA membership, the result of which was announced at the OTA Annual General Meeting in 2014, the OTA Conference moved to be co-located with the British Orthodontic Conference (BOC) in 2016 and 2017. These conferences were held in

Brighton Brighton () is a seaside resort and one of the two main areas of the City of Brighton and Hove in the county of East Sussex, England. It is located south of London. Archaeological evidence of settlement in the area dates back to the Bronze A ...

and

Manchester Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The t ...

. File:Brighton Centre, Kings Road, Brighton (from SE) (April 2013).JPG, BOC / OTAC 2016:

Brighton Centre Brighton Centre is a conference and exhibition centre located in Brighton, England. It is the largest of its kind in southern England, and is regularly used for conferences of the British political parties and other bodies of national importa ...

File:Manchester Central Arena.jpg, BOC / OTAC 2017:

Manchester Central Convention Complex Manchester Central Convention Complex (commonly known as Manchester Central or GMEX (Greater Manchester Exhibition Centre)) is an exhibition and conference centre converted from the former Manchester Central railway station in Manchester, Engl ...

Dental Professionals Conference (2018–2020)

In 2018, the OTA Conference was opened up to the wider dental team and rebranded as the Dental Professionals Conference (DPC). The OTA hosted the event in collaboration with the Dental Technologists Association, the Society of British Dental Nurses and Futurelab. The first DPC was held at Park Plaza Hotel in

Nottingham Nottingham ( , East Midlands English, locally ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city and Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area in Nottinghamshire, East Midlands, England. It is located north-west of London, south-east ...

on the 14 and 15 September 2018 and the second took place at the

Holiday Inn Holiday Inn is an American chain of hotels based in Atlanta, Georgia. and a brand of IHG Hotels & Resorts. The chain was founded in 1952 by Kemmons Wilson, who opened the first location in Memphis, Tennessee that year. The chain was a division ...

hotel in

Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...

on 27–28 September 2019. The third DPC has held online via videoconferencing software due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

OTA Annual Conference (2021–present)

In 2021, the conference returned to its original format. The 50th Anniversary conference was held at the

Marriott Hotel Marriott Hotels & Resorts is Marriott International's brand of full-service hotels and resorts based in Bethesda, Maryland. As of June 30, 2020, there were 582 hotels and resorts with 205,053 rooms operating under the brand, in addition to 160 ...

Liverpool Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a popul ...

, home of the Adams clasp, and the 2022 conference was held at the Park Inn by Radisson Hotel in

York York is a cathedral city with Roman origins, sited at the confluence of the rivers Ouse and Foss in North Yorkshire, England. It is the historic county town of Yorkshire. The city has many historic buildings and other structures, such as a ...

Other events

British Orthodontic Conference

Between 2009 and 2014, the BOS hosted a dedicated lecture programme for orthodontic technicians at the BOC, which was coordinated by the OTA. These meetings were held in

Harrogate Harrogate ( ) is a spa town and the administrative centre of the Borough of Harrogate in North Yorkshire, England. Historic counties of England, Historically in the West Riding of Yorkshire, the town is a tourist destination and its visitor at ...

and

. File:Edinburgh International Conference Centre - geograph.org.uk - 538378.jpg, BOC 2009 / 2014:

Edinburgh International Conference Centre The Edinburgh International Conference Centre (EICC) is the principal convention and conference centre in Edinburgh, Scotland. Location The centre is part of the masterplanned Exchange District in the west end of the city, and was designed by t ...

File:Brighton Centre, Kings Road, Brighton (from SE) (April 2013).JPG, BOC 2010:

File:Harrogate International Centre - geograph.org.uk - 738910.jpg, BOC 2011:

Harrogate Convention Centre Harrogate Convention Centre is a convention and exhibition centre in Harrogate, North Yorkshire, England. History Previously named Harrogate International Centre it was renamed Harrogate Convention Centre in April 2017. The centre has been ...

File:BournemouthIC.jpg, BOC 2012:
Bournemouth International Centre File:Manchester Central Arena.jpg, BOC 2013:

International Orthodontic Congress

In 2015, the OTA hosted the orthodontic technicians lecture programme at the 8th International Orthodontic Congress at

ExCeL ExCeL London (an abbreviation for Exhibition Centre London) is an exhibition centre, international convention centre and former hospital in the Custom House area of Newham, East London. It is situated on a site on the northern quay of the ...

in London.

Dental Technology Showcase

Since 2016, the OTA have held seminar sessions at the Dental Technology Showcase (DTS). The DTS is co-located with the British Dental Conference and the Dentistry Show at the

National Exhibition Centre The National Exhibition Centre (NEC) is an exhibition centre located in Marston Green, Solihull, West Midlands, England. It is near junction 6 of the M42 motorway, and is adjacent to Birmingham Airport and Birmingham International railway stati ...

in Birmingham. The DTS was cancelled in 2020 and 2021 due to the

, but the event returned in 2022.

Scottish Dental Show

Between 2016 and 2019 the OTA sponsored a speaker and had a trade stand at the Scottish Dental Show, which is held at the

Braehead Arena The Braehead Arena is a multi-purpose arena in Renfrewshire, Scotland. The arena was built in 1999, and is located within the Braehead Complex. The arena was formerly the home of the Scottish Eagles ice hockey club and is now the home to the ...

in Renfrewshire. The Scottish Dental Show is expected to return in 2022. File:ExCeL London (geograph 5741387).jpg, IOC 2015:
ExCeL in London. File:National Exhibition Centre main entrance.jpg, DTS 2016–present:
The National Exhibition Centre in Birmingham. File:Entrance to Braehead Arena.jpg, Scottish Dental Show 2016–present:
Braehead Arena in Renfrewshire.

Publications

Conference proceedings

The OTA have published conference proceedings to accompany its annual conference since 1998.

OTA News

The OTA publishes a quarterly newsletter to keep members up to date with news relating to orthodontic technology.

BOS News

The ''BOS News'', the newsletter of the BOS, carries up to four pages of news relating to the OTA.

Prizes and awards

The OTA sponsor three awards and coordinate two on behalf of the BOS:

In other media

The OTA council were featured on the BBC News website in June 2002 in an item about kilts, following the 2001 OTA conference in

. Council members featured were (from left to right) Bob Woods, John Windibank, Ed Payne, John Brown, Gavin Carmichael, Paul Mallett and Chris Bridle.

References

External links

*{{Official website, https://ota-uk.org/
OTA on the British Orthodontic Society website
Dental organisations based in the United Kingdom Non-profit organisations based in the United Kingdom Organisations based in the City of London Organizations established in 1971