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The Supervised
Toothbrushing Toolkit

Supporting supervised toothbrushing programmes to reduce tooth decay in young children

Supervised toothbrushing programmes supplement home-based toothbrushing undertaken by parents and carers. In early-years settings (schools, nurseries or childminders) children brush their own teeth with fluoride toothpaste, with the activity overseen by early-years staff. 

The government has committed £11 million to support supervised toothbrushing programmes for children aged 3-5 years old living in the most deprived areas of England. Additionally, Colgate will provide 23 million toothbrushes and fluoride toothpaste over 5 years for both the supervised toothbrushing programme and at-home brushing. 

 

The BRUSH project has undertaken research with a variety of stakeholders to learn how to best optimise their implementation across England and used this knowledge to develop this toolkit.


This toolkit serves as a central hub of information and resources to help support the implementation of supervised toothbrushing programmes.

Toolkit

About

This section describes the BRUSH project and what supervised toothbrushing programmes are, their impact on oral health, effectiveness and cost-effectiveness, and geographical areas running throughout England.

supervised toothbrushing club

Commissioners

This section describes the activities and considerations for those commissioning a supervised toothbrushing programme.

Commissioners

Interactive Maps of Supervised Toothbrushing

Take a look at the different areas that take part in Supervised Toothbrushing Programmes across England

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Early Years

This section describes and includes resources for the activities and considerations for undertaking supervised toothbrushing in nursery, school and childminding settings.

children brushing their teeth

Families

This section provides information for parents about supervised toothbrushing in early years settings and helpful tips to promote toothbrushing at home.

parental supervision

Providers

This section describes and includes resources for the activities and considerations for the providers of a supervised toothbrushing programme.

Children's Dentist/Oral providers

"This is an excellent resource, comprehensive and easily accessible to all stakeholders. It will reduce duplication of work and improve the quality and consistency of Supervised Toothbrushing programmes across the country."
Consultant in dental public health.

NIHR ARC
NIHR ARC
University of Leeds
University of Sheffield
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