Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to deliver supervised tooth-brushing sessions for children in nurseries and school breakfast clubs.

We recognise the importance of healthy teeth - poor oral health can affect a child's ability to sleep, eat, speak, play and socialise with other children. Early Years Educator qualifications must cover the promotion of the health, safety and welfare of children. All early years’ providers have a responsibility to promote the health of children in their setting, set out in the Early Years Foundation Stage framework.

Good oral health can form part of this, and Public Health England (PHE) worked with the Department for Education to publish in December 2016 a toolkit for providers considering a supervised tooth brushing programme. PHE has also established a Child Oral Health Improvement Programme Board to ensure that every child grows up free from tooth decay.