Source · Select Committees · Public Accounts Committee
Recommendation 12
12
Accepted
Government commits to preventative oral healthcare measures including supervised toothbrushing and water fluoridation
Conclusion
The new government’s commitment to contract reform includes reference to a focus on prevention,27 and also to a programme of supervised toothbrushing for three, four, and five–year olds “most in need”.28 Tooth decay is a leading cause of hospital admissions for children in this country,29 and as DHSC told us in the session, prevention is preferable to needing treatment from a dentist.30 Strengthening preventative oral healthcare measures is an important accompaniment to ensuring access to dentists, particularly for children. The government has now published further information on its proposed supervised toothbrushing scheme,31 and has confirmed its intention to expand community water fluoridation in the 20 C&AG’s Report, para 1.25 21 Q 27 22 C&AG’s Report, para 1.26 23 Q 25 24 NHS Dental Contracting Framework, 15 October 2024 25 Qq 77 and 97 26 Letter from the Interim Permanent Secretary of the Department of Health and Social Care and the Chief Executive Officer at NHS England relating to a follow up on the oral evidence session held on 13 February 2025 on Fixing NHS Dentistry, 18 March 2025 27 NHS Dental Contracting Framework, 15 October 2024 28 Schools: Dental Health, answered 4 February 2025 29 C&AG’s Report, para 1.10 30 Q 18 31 DHSC, Supervised toothbrushing for children to prevent tooth decay, published 7 March 2025 11 north–east.32 However, as DHSC noted, a relatively low percentage of the UK population has water fluoridation in comparison with some other countries, and there are other measures (including fluoride varnish) that can also be highly effective at protecting teeth.33 The 2024 dental recovery plan
Government Response Summary
The government agrees with the observation and states that it has already introduced a national supervised toothbrushing programme for 3-5-year-olds in deprived areas and announced the expansion of water fluoridation in the North East. It also highlights ongoing work on sugar reduction and a smoke-free generation as part of its commitment to prevention.
Government Response
Accepted
HM Government
Accepted
1.8 The government agrees with the Committee’s recommendation. Recommendation implemented: December 2024 1.9 The Plan for Change has already set out the government’s commitment to addressing the main underlying drivers of ill-health and tackling persistent inequalities in health. This includes a shift from sickness to preventing illnesses before they happen. 1.10 As a first step to improve oral health, the government has introduced a national supervised toothbrushing programme for 3-5-year-olds in the most deprived areas of England and announced the expansion of water fluoridation in the North East of England to reach a further 1.6 million people. The government is also working with all sectors of the food industry to make further progress on reducing levels of sugar in the everyday food and drink people buy and creating a smoke-free generation. This will address some of the main risk factors for poor oral health. 1.11 The government is committed to rebuilding NHS dentistry in the long-term, including a shift to focus on prevention.