Almost half of children have not seen a dentist in the past year with more than 5million now overdue an appointment, damning new research reveals.
It comes as rotting teeth remain the leading cause of hospital admissions for children aged five to nine years – fuelled by poor diets, a failure to properly brush their teeth and difficulty finding a dentist in so-called ‘dental deserts’.
The NHS recommends under-18s see a dentist at least once a year because their teeth can decay faster than adults, who are advised to have a check-up every two years.
But a new study by the House of Commons Library, commissioned by the Liberal Democrats [must keep], shows 5.35million children have not been seen for at least a year.
This includes nearly 1million children in the South East of England alone, where almost half (46.1 per cent) are behind on their appointments.
Rotting teeth remain the leading cause of hospital admissions for children aged five to nine years. (Stock photo)
A study has shown that 5.35million children have not been seen for at least a year. (Stock photo)
This is similar to situation across the country as a whole, with 44.6 per cent of children now overdue a check-up.
Hackney, a deprived borough of London, has the worst record in England, with 62.3 per cent of children going unseen last year.
Other areas with high rates include Herefordshire (61.7 per cent), Portsmouth (59.3 per cent) and Thurrock (58.54 per cent).
Researchers estimated the number of children who had not seen a dentist in the year to March 2024 using official population data and NHS statistics.
Daisy Cooper, the Liberal Democrat’s health spokesperson, said: ‘It’s a scandal that, across the country, millions of children are going without basic dental care.
‘The previous Conservative government mismanaged NHS dentistry so badly that they presided over under-spends in the dentistry budget whilst children’s teeth were left to rot.
‘This appalling situation cannot go on.
‘We Liberal Democrats are calling for an emergency registration scheme so that children who are eligible for free check-ups can actually access them, and for reform of the broken dental contract to bring more dentists back to the NHS and end the scandal of dental deserts.
‘The new government cannot waste any time in gripping this emergency and rescuing NHS dentistry to ensure our children get the care they deserve.’
The British Dental Association, which represents dentists, warned that deep oral health inequalities are already widening as the result of ongoing access problems.
Eddie Crouch, chairman of the BDA, said: ‘The Government has a duty to the millions of children missing out to ensure NHS dentistry has a future.
‘The oral health gap between rich and poor is widening. The only way we can bring this service back from the brink is to fix the broken contract fuelling this crisis.’
Dr Helen Stewart, officer for health improvement at the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health, said: ‘The link between deprivation and decay is undeniable, with children living in lower-income areas more than twice as likely to have tooth decay than their more affluent peers.
The NHS recommends under-18s see a dentist at least once a year because their teeth can decay faster than adults. (Stock image)
Researchers estimated the number of children who had not seen a dentist in the year to March 2024 using official population data and NHS statistics. (Stock image)
‘This is wholly unacceptable in one of the richest nations in the world.
‘Paediatricians regularly see children with poor oral health presenting with consistent pain, infections, altered sleep and eating patterns and decreased wellbeing.
‘Poor oral health in childhood also increases risk of dental problems in adulthood, such as tooth loss and chronic gum disease, which has even been linked to increased risk of cardiovascular disease.
‘Our dentistry colleagues are doing their best to meet demand, but are unable to make meaningful progress without further support.
‘We want to see good oral health habits encouraged by implementing supervised tooth brushing schemes in all nurseries and primary schools and for all children to be seen by a dentist by the age of one years old.
‘Adequate workforce planning and funding is also essential if we are to improve the health of our nation.’
A Department of Health and Social Care spokesperson said: ‘It is unacceptable that too many people, including children, are not able to access the dental treatment they need.
‘That’s why rebuilding NHS dentistry is a priority for this government.
‘We will start with an extra 700,000 urgent dentistry appointments to help those who need it most, and reform the dental contract to encourage more dentists to offer NHS services to patients.
‘Prevention is better than cure, so we will also introduce supervised tooth brushing for three to five-year-olds in the most deprived communities.’
