Almost 26,000 children were admitted to hospital for tooth extractions in England in 2013-2014 and tooth decay is the most common cause of hospital admissions among 5-9-year-old children. The Faculty of Dental Surgery at the Royal College of Surgeons (RCS) has warned that action is needed to improve children's oral health.

A paper published in January by the Faculty, The state of children's oral health in England,1 highlights that tooth decay is almost entirely preventable and for the first time urges the Government, political parties and stakeholders to take greater measures to tackle the disease.

England lags behind Scotland and Wales in improving children's oral health. Between 2012 and 2014 the number of children who did not see an NHS dentist in England was double that of Scotland, where Government-led initiatives such as Childsmile have been introduced to increase parental awareness of oral health.

Water fluoridation has also been shown to reduce the rate of tooth decay. In England, only 10% of the population benefit from a water supply where the fluoride content is at the optimum level for dental health.2

Currently the NHS spends £30 million on hospital-based tooth extractions for children so investing in preventative measures early on could mean long term savings for NHS Trusts.