Supervised toothbrushing to benefit 600,000 children

A national toothbrushing programme is to be rolled out for three to five-year olds in early years settings — including nurseries and primary schools — in the most deprived areas of England. This will be launched in collaboration with Colgate-Palmolive who will providing more than 23 million free toothbrushes and toothpastes donated to children across the country.

Rolled out with the Department for Education, the scheme is the latest tranche of measures to make government-funded childcare more affordable and accessible to the most disadvantaged families. Supervised toothbrushing is a proven, evidence-based health intervention, which is expected to deliver tangible change to young children’s oral health. The rollout is expected to save the NHS over £34 million that would otherwise be spent treating dental diseases in children.

This follows the worsening children’s oral health crisis, with the most common reason children aged five to nine are admitted to hospital being treatment for decayed teeth. Latest data reveals that one in four children aged five have experienced tooth decay in England, with higher rates of up to one in three in more deprived areas. The scheme thus aims to install good oral hygiene habits early in young children.

The government is additionally investing £11 million in local authorities across England to ensure supervised toothbrushing in schools and nurseries that voluntarily sign up, meaning that 600,000 children each year should benefit from this new scheme. 

Alongside 23 million toothpastes and toothbrushes distributed over five years, Colgate-Palmolive is also providing educational resources and a children’s oral health campaign supporting the NHS, developed with its experience of global oral health education.

Health minister Stephen Kinnock said: “It is shocking that a third of five-year-olds in the most deprived areas have experience of tooth decay — something we know can have a lifelong impact on their health.

“It’s why we’re delivering supervised toothbrushing to young children and families who are most in need of support as part of our wider plans to revive the oral health of the nation. This includes providing 23 million free toothbrushes through our partnership with Colgate-Palmolive to reach up to 600,000 children each year.

“We’re already rolling out 700,000 extra urgent dental appointments for those who need treatment, but by focusing on prevention we can help children have the best start in life.

“On top of this, we will reform the dental contract to get dentists providing more NHS as we fundamentally reform the sector through our Plan for Change so it is there for patients once again.”