Published: Wednesday, 27 September 2023

At a population, school or early years’ level, the evidence tells us brushing each day at school over a two-year period is effective for preventing tooth decay and can establish life-long behaviour to promote oral health.

Additionally, the Five-Year-Old’s Survey (2021/22) found a higher mean number of teeth affected by dental decay amongst children in Nottingham than in the East Midlands and England generally.

The current plan for the service is to reintroduce a Supervised Toothbrushing Programme to Nottingham City early years settings.

The commissioned service would train staff in those early years settings to supervise children brushing their teeth once a day in the setting. The service would provide all of the resources such as toothbrushes, toothpaste and toothbrush racks as well as supportive educational oral health promotion materials for the children and their caregivers. The commissioned service would also provide a named dental professional for advice if needed, and the training delivered by the service would include infection prevention and control measures as well as effective tooth brushing techniques.

Complete the survey at https://forms.office.com/e/6p0CBgw6F9