The British Society of Paediatric Dentistry (BSPD), the national society dedicated to improving the oral health of children from birth to 16, welcomes today’s news of the good progress being made to bring-to-life the supervised toothbrushing pledge made in March 2025. The Department of Health and Social Care’s (DHSC) initiative to fund a targeted supervised toothbrushing scheme for three, four and five year olds in England giving children in early years settings toothbrushing support, along with toothbrushes and toothpastes to take home, is now in-action, and the results so far are significant.
BSPD supports this preventative approach to children’s oral health and the announcement earlier this year to invest a record £11million is a key step in the right direction. Together with the commitment from Colgate-Palmolive, we should see children’s oral health improve considerably in the next two to five years, through this evidence-based intervention that is a cornerstone of the BSPD Blueprint to dentistry recovery.
Dr Oosh Devalia, British Society of Paediatric Dentistry (BSPD) President said: “The news of the progress being made in rolling-out the supervised toothbrushing initiatives targeting areas of highest need is welcomed by the British Society of Paediatric Dentistry. We have been pushing for this for over a decade and had included it in our BSPD Blueprint to policymakers on the steps needed to turn around children’s oral health. It is an evidence-based intervention that gives children a better oral health start in life, as well as saving money for the NHS in the long-term – and it is simple to carry it out in early years settings. This is a great start, but here is still much to do to reach all the children who need this support.”
