A YORK cosmetic dentistry clinic is to undergo a £600,000 investment with a move to new premises to meet a 40 per cent growth in demand for treatments this year.

Andrea Ubhi York has received planning approval to change retail premises in Goodramgate into a dental practice, as part of a project which will see the business relocate from its current base in Stonegate.

Seven new jobs will be created with the move, bringing total staff numbers at the practice, which was last year named Dentist of the Year North, to 20.

The practice was founded by Andrea Ubhi in 2002 after she noticed a growing demand for private, cosmetic-focused dentistry while running her other dental practice, Clock House Dental, which she sold earlier this year.

Dr Ubhi said: "Since the start of 2014, we have seen an amazing 40 per cent growth in demand for our treatments and the size of our existing premises was holding us back.

"The sale of Clock House Dental has meant that I can invest more in Andrea Ubhi York and really grow the business in response to this demand, so we decided to look for another suitable location in York and found 22 Goodramgate, which is perfect.

"It has a shop window which will make us more visible to passers-by and we will have four surgeries and two waiting rooms on different floors allowing disabled access. It is a very exciting step forward for our business."

Dr Ubhi hopes to move the business from the Grade II-listed York Medical Society Rooms in Stonegate into Goodramgate by next summer.

The Goodramgate premises are currently occupied by Twenty Two Interiors, which is set to relocate in the new year, but will continue to remain open at 22 Goodramgate until then.

The investment in Andrea Ubhi York's expansion follows a captial investment of £80,000 earlier this year in the latest CT scanning equipment, producing 3D imagery of patients prior to dental implant surgery.

The scans are then used to carry out virtual surgery so the outcome of physical treatments can be more accurately pre-determined.

Following the installation of the scanner Andrea Ubhi York has already seen a 20 per cent increase in the uptake of treatments, and is now taking referrals from other dentists across the region.

The practice serves the needs of clients throughout the North of England and often takes referrals from other dentists in Yorkshire for more complex procedures, in particular dental implants and cosmetic dental treatments.

Earlier in the year the practice treated Yorkshire model and former Miss England Georgia Horsley to achieve a “Hollywood smile” ahead of her marriage to McFly’s Danny Jones.