Tooth decay continues to be the most common reason for hospital admissions for children aged six to 10, with a staggering 40,000 children admitted every year for dental extractions. The Keep Britain Smiling campaign, supported by The British Orthodontic Society (BOS), helps to tackle the issue head-on by empowering children to take simple steps to improve their oral hygiene.

Tooth decay continues to be the most common reason for hospital admissions for children aged six to 10, with a staggering 40,000 children admitted every year for dental extractions. The Keep Britain Smiling campaign, supported by The British Orthodontic Society (BOS), helps to tackle the issue head-on by empowering children to take simple steps to improve their oral hygiene.

On September 28, 2023, at the British Orthodontic Society’s annual conference in London, it called on dental professionals across England and Wales to become Keep Britain Smiling ambassadors by pledging their support to champion the campaign in their area.

Keep Britain Smiling has already harnessed support from The English Football League and The Premier League Primary Stars, who are using the power of football to connect with young children about the importance of good oral health. Feedback to date on this groundbreaking campaign from children, parents and teachers has been overwhelmingly positive.

The Premier League Charitable Fund offers a free resource – ‘Taking care of our teeth’. It includes worksheets and online activities to boost the dental health habits of children aged seven to 11, available to every primary school in England and Wales. It encourages classroom-based discussions on the sugar levels in different food types, the effects that sugar can have on oral health and how to make healthy choices to keep teeth strong.

Nick Perchard, Premier League head of community and football policy, said, “Premier League Primary Stars uses the power of football to encourage children to talk about a wide range of issues in the classroom, supporting them to make healthy, positive life choices. This education resource, which includes full lesson plans and interactive content, is a great example of our ongoing work to support health and wellbeing.”

The Keep Britain Smiling campaign continues to gain high profile support. Jay Rodriguez, Burnley and England footballer, said, “I’m delighted to put my support behind Keep Britain Smiling. The statistics on dental decay in children are shocking. The campaign tackles the issue with simple and effective messaging that empowers children to look after their teeth. The Premier League Primary Stars ‘Looking after your teeth’ resource uses football to interest and motivate children to learn about the importance of dental health. It’s great that football and healthcare can work together alongside The British Orthodontic Society to Keep Britain Smiling!”

The national campaign builds on the success of Stoke City Community Trust’s award-winning Keep Stoke Smiling project, which has used the appeal of football to deliver diet and dental health messaging to 11,000 primary school children in Staffordshire.

Speaking at The British Orthodontic Conference, Alice Faulkner, health and wellbeing coordinator at Stoke City Football Club Community Trust, spoke about how dental professionals can get involved and volunteer for Keep Britain Smiling. She said, "Through the Keep Stoke Smiling campaign, we embarked on a mission to empower children with the knowledge and skills they need to take care of their teeth. It has reached and touched the lives of children from all corners of our city. Feedback has been overwhelmingly positive from children, teachers and parents. I believe the positive changes we've initiated in oral health will continue to ripple through the years to come."

Dr Karen Juggins, orthodontist and founder of Keep Stoke Smiling, said, “Never before has the need been more urgent to revolutionise the way dental health care messaging is delivered. I’m delighted that our campaign in Stoke is now spreading countrywide with Keep Britain Smiling which is supported by The British Orthodontic Society. We now want to harness the power of collaboration and encourage dental communities to champion the campaign in their area.”

The Royal College of Surgeons have endorsed the campaign. Dr Charlotte Eckhardt, Dean of the Faculty of Dental Surgery at The Royal College of Surgeons of England, said, “Keep Britain Smiling is simple and effective. It delivers clear messages like ‘spit, don’t rinse’ that empower children by encouraging positive oral health habits at a young age. I’m delighted to support Keep Britain Smiling and look forward to seeing it continue to go from strength to strength.”

For more information visit www.keepbritainsmiling.co.uk

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