Does Childsmile work?

Childsmile is a publicly-funded health improvement programme and subject to full evaluation to assess whether or not it works and which parts of the programme have had the most effect.

2.9_Kids learning toothbrushing at nursery

The University of Glasgow Dental School is leading an evaluation of Childsmile. It is working in close collaboration with a range of NHS organisations.

The evaluation of Childsmile also involves health professionals and individuals including:

  • Health Visitors and Public Health Nurses
  • General Dental Practitioners
  • Dental Nurses
  • Dental Health Support Workers
  • Parents and children involved in the programme and their families

We understand the importance of involving parents and families to make sure their views inform the development of the Childsmile programme.

If you have a child involved in Childsmile, you may be asked to help with evaluation. Taking part is your choice - you can drop out at any point without this affecting your, or your child’s, involvement in the Childsmile programme.

If you want to learn more about the evaluation you can go to the evaluation section or you can contact a member of the Evaluation and Research Teams.

Childsmile facts

In the first five years of Childsmile, there were 97,653 fluoride varnish applications in schools.