Public Health England (PHE) will work with councils to improve children’s oral health.
PHE’s national lead for children, young people, and families, Eustace de Sousa, said tackling the issue is set to be one of the organisation's priorities over the next 18 months.
He shared statistics showing that 27% of five-year-old children in the country have tooth decay and there is “significant social inequality around poor oral health”.
“It is a massive ambition but we know that through effective early intervention programmes we can achieve that.”
De Sousa said the organisation is in the process of establishing a board with the Local Government Association (LGA) and the Society of Local Authority Chief Executives to oversee the work of councils in improving public health.
“This is so we can accelerate the improvements we’ve seen in some parts of the country, improving the use of the evidence base, improve the competencies and capacities of the wider workforce and synergy of opportunities with other services," he said.