The scheme, taking place across 23 North Somerset schools, encourages children to brush their teeth under the supervision of a trained teacher.
Supported by the North Somerset Better Health team, At Home Dental and the Big Brush Team have found engaging ways to inspire children to brush their teeth through singing, rhymes and mascots. The team has provided training and support to ensure the schools have everything they need to be able to help the children to brush their teeth.
The council is now looking to expand this scheme to more childcare settings, starting with preschools in the more deprived neighbourhoods. Eighteen settings have been identified and the council has anticipated many others will take up the scheme.
This follows a recent debate in the House of Commons that revealed that 37 per cent of five-year-olds in North Somerset have enamel and/or dentine decay, a figure well above the national average.
Jenna Ho Marris, executive member for Homes and Health at North Somerset Council, said, “It’s imperative that we work with all our partners to educate children, parents and caregivers to ensure we improve levels of oral health in this region. Schemes such as this supervised toothbrushing are vital to enabling better health for our children in North Somerset.
“We continue to promote the key health messages of brushing twice a day, reducing sugar and regularly visiting a dentist to ensure that our children get the best possible start when it comes to oral health.”