Thousands of Wigan children don't see a dentist

The British Dental Association has accused the Government of an unwillingness to engage with hard-to-reach families, saying it could save money through earlier intervention.

Data from the NHS shows that just 65 per cent of children in Wigan saw an NHS dentist in the 12 months to June 2018, though this is more than the 59 per cent average across England.

It means 23,817 children in the area have not been for their check-up over the period, despite NHS guidelines saying they should be seen every 12 months. NHS dental care for children is free.

The BDA has called on authorities in England to follow the example of the devolved Scottish and Welsh governments, who have set up programmes reaching out to children in schools.

The BDA’s chair of general dental practice, Henrik Overgaard-Nielsen, said that current outreach programmes were more likely to target people who already visit their dentist.

He said: “Sadly, the Government has shown no interest in getting hard-to-reach families to attend, when prevention could save our NHS millions.

“In Scotland and Wales dedicated national programmes are reaching out in nurseries and primary schools, yet in England the authorities have offered a few posters to pop up in dental practices.

“When tooth decay remains the number one reason for child hospital admissions we need more than preaching to the converted.”

Figures show that one in three five-year-olds in Wigan inspected in the 2016-17 academic year had experienced tooth decay. Among them, 3.9 per cent of the pupils had required a tooth extraction, a procedure which generally requires hospital treatment for children.

Adults are advised to see their dentist at least every two years.

The figures show that even fewer adults than children had visited during the advised timeline, with just 60% seeing an NHS dentist in the 24 months to June this year.

A spokesman for the Department of Health and Social Care said: “We want every single child and adult to have access to NHS care, whatever their background or location – and last year a record 6.9 million children were seen by a dentist with numbers rising every year.”