Borehamwood's very own tooth fairy hopes to raise £2,500 to help support families in Zimbabwe with no access to dental health care.

Simone Cowan, a hygiene therapist at Drayton House Dental Practice in Borehamwood, will be volunteering her skills and time on a two-week international effort in Zimbabwe this September.

Led by the charity Dentaid, she will be providing pain-relieving dental treatments and oral health education in disadvantaged communities and in schools and orphanages.

But the trip comes at a cost and Mrs Cowan must find at least £2,500 to fund her journey.

To help raise the money needed, the Drayton House Dental Practice are to set aside the afternoon of September 3 to fundraise for Simone Cowan’s mission.

Staff at the practice will volunteer their time between 2pm to 5pm and will offer 12 new patients a free scale & and a free dental check-up in return for a donation towards Simone’s Dentaid mission to Zimbabwe.

Mrs Cowan said: “I've always done charity work. I was involved in Christian missions to Serbia in 2002 and 2005 and supported a dental division of a Christian relief team to Uganda in 2007. Then through my own church I was involved in a medical mission to Zimbabwe for three months in 2007.

“Then I got married and had children – so I had to stop all that charity work. Now the kids are older I feel I can start it again – you could say that I am returning from maternity leave! The practice has already been very supportive – individual patients have been amazing making donations independently – I would like to thank them so much."

Simone will lead the nine other volunteer dentists, nurses, and other hygiene therapists taking part in this mission.

Each will have to raise the £2,500 which pays for flights, accommodation, food, visas, registration with dental council, transport, and things that will be left in Zimbabwe such as mobile dental chairs- dental materials, instruments, gloves, face masks, anaesthetics.

Principal dentist Rohit Mistry said: “We believe in the value of this trip and the work that Dentaid do. It is hard to imagine the distress of people with dental pain with nowhere to go for treatment for many years.

“We are lucky to live here where there is a robust health system and a stable society. This is a chance to give a little back. We also want to support Simone who week in and week out demonstrates her commitment and integrity.”