Oral Health in Early Years
Early years settings provide a learning environment in which children can develop lifelong skills, attitudes, behaviours and knowledge to influence positive oral health outcomes in later life.
As set out in the revised Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) Framework, early years providers are required to promote the good oral health of children. This has been included because good oral health habits need to be formed from an early age. Tooth decay is largely preventable, but it's still a serious problem among young children, affecting around a quarter (25%) of 5 year olds!
Children who have toothache, or need treatment, may have pain or infections. This can have a wider effect and lead to problems eating, sleeping, socialising and learning. Tooth extraction is one of the most common procedures for children under 5 in hospital.
You can view the Early Years Framework here.
The Oral Health Improvement Team
The Oral Health Improvement team is based within Leicestershire County Council's Public Health Team and provide:
- Oral Health Training for frontline staff
- Supervised Tooth Brushing training for staff in early years settings
- Oral Health Resource Library
- Healthy Teeth, Happy Smiles information leaflets
- Supporting national oral health campaigns
The team provides support to professionals to promote oral health and prevent tooth decay in order to reduce health inequalities.
Training can be provided during a team meeting or during allocated professional development time. All our training is evidence based, evaluated and where appropriate certificated.
Oral Health Training
Our Oral Health Training is evidence based and is an effective way of ensuring all staff have a basic understanding of the key oral health messages.
To register your interest please email; [email protected] *please make the subject heading of your email 'OH Training'.
Supervised Toothbrushing
Delivering a supervised toothbrushing programme in your early years setting supports children to integrate tooth brushing into their daily routines. Staff are trained to effectively support children with tooth brushing using a fluoride toothpaste once a day in the setting.
