Over two million free toothbrushes and tubes of toothpaste have been delivered to three- to five-year-olds in the most deprived areas of England in a large-scale dental health drive.
The drive comes as the first stage of a five-year partnership between the government and Colgate-Palmolive to help children develop positive toothbrushing habits and set them on a path to better oral health, forming part of the government’s Plan for Change to give children the best start in life.
Up to 600,000 three- to five-year-olds in early years settings are set to benefit from the scheme, which will help to develop good toothbrushing habits.
Education minister and minister for equalities Olivia Bailey said: “Giving children the best start in life means giving them the skills and habits that set them up for the future, and that includes something as simple but vital as daily toothbrushing.
“Through our Plan for Change, we are working across government to make sure tens of thousands more children – a record share – are school-ready at age five, so they reach the school gate healthy, confident and ready to learn.
“Alongside delivering important schemes like this one, we have increased access to high-quality early years care for hundreds of thousands of families through the rollout of 30 hours’ government-funded childcare, and through our Best Start in Life strategy we’re going even further to rebuild early years services, recruit more early years teachers and open Best Start Family Hubs in every local authority.”