More than 6.5 million children in England have not been seen by an NHS dentist for at least a year.

Based on the new research commissioned by the Liberal Democrats, the British Dental Association (BDA) has warned a lack of access will disproportionately impact lower income, higher needs families, widening the UK's oral health gap.

This comes as more and more practices are no longer taking new NHS patients, coupled with long waiting lists for those that are and high price lists for private clinics.

"Access to dentistry has fallen off a cliff. We're losing the ability to nip problems in the bud, and the results are frankly devastating," says BDA chair Eddie Crouch.

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Data obtained by the professional body through a Freedom of Information request shows more than 15 million appointments for children have been lost since lockdown, amounting to well over a year's worth of dentistry in normal times.

In March, the first oral health survey of five-year-olds published since lockdown showed (once again) no improvements in tooth decay levels and a widening gap between rich and poor.

Some 23.7% children in England had experience of obvious decay, a slight increase on the previous survey of five-year-olds in 2019, which stood at 23.4%. While inequalities in tooth decay in this age group reduced from 2008-2015, there have been no further reductions since then.

In 2019, surveys showed dental decay was higher in children from more deprived areas (34.3%) than in less deprived areas (13.7%) – an oral health gap of 20.6%.

In 2022 data, the gap has widened. Dental decay in more deprived areas was 35.1% compared to 13.5% in the more affluent – an oral health gap of over 21.6%.

The BDA says it has called out the government for failing to deliver its pledge of expanding supervised brushing programmes in schools and nurseries, and expanding water fluoridation (a measure to help prevent tooth decay).

This would help with reducing the number of children needing treatment in the first place.

"A preventable disease remains the number one reason for hospital admissions among young children, and things are set to go from bad to worse," warns Crouch.

"Kids in our most deprived communities will be hit the hardest while government sits on the sidelines."

So, how often should children ideally be having check-ups and what can parents do to help in the current climate?

How often should children go to the dentist?

While adults should have a check-up up to every two years, children should see a dentist at least once a year. This is because their enamel is weaker, putting them at greater risk of decay.

Children should be taken to the dentist when their first milk teeth appear, to help them get used to the environment, and help prevent decay or deal with any oral issues early on.

How can you find an NHS dentist?

NHS dental care is free for children under 18, or under 19 and in full-time education.

You can search for a dentist near you by entering your town, city or postcode in England on this NHS search tool. You will be given a list of dentists with all their details, and information on whether it's taking new patients or not.

For example, it may say "Accepting children aged 17 or under", "Only taking NHS patients referred by another dentist", "Not accepting new patients", or "This dentist surgery has not given a recent update on whether they're taking new NHS patients. You can contact them directly to ask."

This can be useful for knowing which clinics to call and inquire about appointments, and increase the chances of getting your child seen by an NHS dentist if they're not already registered with one.

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Preventing teeth decay in children

In the meantime, with NHS dentist appointments in high demand, helping to look after your child's teeth as best as possible can be a useful preventative measure.

It's important to use a fluoride toothpaste, as this helps prevent and control tooth decay, according to the NHS.

NHS toothbrushing tips for kids aged up to three

• Start brushing your baby's teeth as soon as the first milk tooth breaks through (usually at around six months, but can be earlier or later)

• Parents or carers should brush the teeth

• Brush teeth twice daily for about two minutes with fluoride toothpaste

• Brush last thing at night before bed and on one other occasion [ideally morning]

• Use children's fluoride toothpaste containing no less than 1,000ppm of fluoride (check label) unless a dentist advises family toothpaste containing between 1,350ppm and 1,500ppm fluoride

• Use only a smear of toothpaste

• Make sure children don't eat or lick toothpaste from the tube

NHS toothbrushing tips for kids aged three-six

• Brush at least twice daily for about two minutes with fluoride toothpaste

• Brush last thing at night before bed and at least on one other occasion [ideally morning]

• Parents or carers should brush the teeth

• Use children's fluoride toothpaste containing no less than 1,000ppm of fluoride (check label) unless a dentist advises family toothpaste containing between 1,350ppm and 1,500ppm fluoride

• Use only a pea-sized amount of toothpaste

• Spit out after brushing and don't rinse – if you rinse, the fluoride won't work as well

For more information, see this NHS page on children's teeth.

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