New data reveals growing oral health disparities among Scotland’s children, with only 68.2% of 11-year-olds in the most deprived areas found to be decay free, compared to 91.5% in the least deprived communities. This 23.3% gap has widened since 2019, when it stood at 20.1%.
The National Dental Inspection Programme’s 2025 report shows that overall, 81.5% of P7 children had no obvious dental decay, similar to 2023 figures.
The average number of decayed teeth remained around 0.40, indicating that progress in reducing decay has plateaued since the COVID-19 pandemic.
Gillian Lennox, chair of the British Dental Association’s Scottish Dental Practice Committee, warned: “Vital progress tackling deep oral health inequalities has at best plateaued, and at worst gone into reverse. Our children will pay the price for any indifference here.”
The findings underscore the urgent need for sustained efforts to address dental inequalities ahead of Scotland’s upcoming election.
