Plymouth schoolchildren protest over lack of NHS dentists as half of pupils are unable to register
Watch Kathy Wardle's report
Children at Whitleigh Community Primary school in Plymouth have launched a campaign over what they say is their struggle to access to NHS dentists in the city.
A survey of families at the school found 50 per cent of all pupils can't register with an NHS dentist, and those that are registered struggle to get an appointment - 75 per cent said they couldn't afford private dental care.
Teacher Sarah O'Neill has described the situation as a 'national crisis' and said: "I was shocked, I knew the statistics wouldn't be great. We know there is a dental crisis, but I was surprised at the numbers.
"We've had children missing school days having to be sent home with toothache. We want to see all children able to access a dentist when they need to."
Some parents at the school told ITV News they've been waiting for more than a year for their children to have a check-up.
One parent, Charmaine Ling, said: "My two children haven't been seen now by an NHS dentist for 18 months.
"My youngest daughter is losing her teeth and due to her complex needs I feel it's really important that she sees a dentist as soon as possible because her adult teeth are now developing."
Other families say they've had to turn to more costly private care to have their children seen by a dentist.
Another parent, Deanne Johnson, said: "Unfortunately our dentist left which then left us with either we go private or we go on a waiting list.
"I couldn't get anywhere, so unfortunately I'm paying for my children to be with a private dentist."
Whitleigh Community Primary School is certified as a UNICEF UK Rights Respecting School.
Children across the school learnt about human rights during their Citizenship Week, and have held a protest as part of their learning.
NHS England is responsible for commissioning dental services in England, and is required to meet the needs of their local population for both urgent and routine dental care.
In response to the school's protest, an NHS England South West spokesperson, said: "We understand it can be frustrating for parents as there is demand for appointments and our practices are doing their best to reduce the number of people waiting for treatment, especially children.
"Here in the South West we are working hard on a dental reform programme to try and improve access to NHS dental appointments for all patients, with some initiatives already underway.
"In Devon we now have two child focused dental practices and are piloting a Supervised Toothbrushing programme in primary schools.
"Devon also has an additional 40 stabilisation or unscheduled appointments a week for children and adults.
"We are also working hard to increase the number of dentists, dental nurses and therapists and other dental staff across the South West to help increase the number of people able to get a dental appointment."
It says if children need urgent dental care, parents should contact NHS 111 and they will be triaged and if appropriate seen for their urgent dental care need.
The government says the GP Patient Survey shows that over three quarters (75.3 per cent) of patients who tried to get a dental appointment in the last two years were successful.
In January 2022 NHS England made an extra £50 million available for NHS dentistry for the remainder of the 2021/22 contract year to secure increased care capacity and help tackle Covid backlogs.
A Department of Health and Social Care spokesperson said: "The number of dentists practising in the NHS increased by over 500 last year and we are continuing work to improve access to dental care for all NHS patients – backed by more than £3 billion annually.
"We have already started to make changes to the dental contract to incentivise dentists, paying more for complex work and enabling those with capacity to treat more patients, with further improvements to come."