When asked about the suggestion by presenters Susanna Reid and Ed Balls, Streeting who was speaking live from a school in Teesside responded: “I have a lot of sympathy with viewers who will posting on social media or emailing in saying ‘surely this is parents responsibility’ and they are absolutely right about that.
“At the same time we know that in too many cases it’s not happening at home and tooth decay is now the number one reason for hospital admissions amongst children aged between six and 10.”
Responding to concerns by viewers about “how many more” parental roles teachers are going to be given, Streeting added: “It’s six minutes of the school day, Keir and I are going to be seeing this live in action this morning and the benefits to children both in terms of their health but also their education.
‘This is a parenting job.’@Susannareid100 questions Shadow Health Secretary Wes Streeting on his suggestion of supervised tooth brushing for 3-5-year-olds during the school day. pic.twitter.com/ZI4uGkmHGM
— Good Morning Britain (@GMB) June 11, 2024
“Because if children are sat there in agony with toothache, they’re not concentrating on what’s going on in class, their behaviour is more likely to be disruptive, we think this is a practical and effective measure targeted on areas of high deprivation where we know we’ve got the biggest problem with tooth decay”.
But how do you feel about this? If you are a parent or teacher, let us know who you think should be responsible for children brushing their teeth in our poll below:
GMB viewers have their say about teachers helping children brush their teeth
Many GMB fans took to X to criticise the suggestions by Steering, as one posted: “It’s up to the parents to learn the children to brush their teeth..not schools.”
Another added: “Labour Mp Wes Streeting has put forward that teachers should supervise 3-5 year olds brushing their teeth.
“Call me old fashioned but I suggest that Labour put forward parents taking parental responsibility for their kids.”
Recommended reading:
This user wrote: “So all I’ve heard from labour so far in the build up is, parents no longer have to parent, and teachers and the government will do it for you? Feeding children, basic hygiene(brushing teeth), potty training, getting dressed all all the parents job. Not teachers.”
However, some agreed with Labour MP Steeting, as one person tweeted: “I live in Switzerland and the kids have teeth brushing lessons at primary school. A special teacher comes in to school once a month. They keep a tooth brush at school. The kids loved it. @GMB.”
“Some schools have been doing this for years, very successfully. In Bolton we have had ‘bus brushes’ which are used in nursery and reception. It’s all part of learning. Health and hygiene is an important part of it,” shared this GMB viewer.
