Children at Mawgan-in-Pydar Primary School will be smiling brightly thanks to the generosity of Steve Coombe, owner of interior design company 3iDog.
Steve is funding Brighter Smiles – Cornwall’s Oral Health Campaign – in this local school which will see over 120 children receive oral health care and education from October 2019.
This commitment sees 3iDog join a growing group of supporters committed to reversing the continuing trend of preventable tooth extractions from children across Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly – the number one reason children aged 5-9 years are admitted to hospital for general anaesthetic.
The support from Steve will enable the dedicated Brighter Smiles team to set up toothbrushing clubs in the school’s reception class, apply fluoride varnishing to the teeth of reception and year 1 pupils, and deliver oral health education to all the school children with home education packs for all.
Deanne Carden, Head of School at Mawgan-in-Pydar, part of the Aspire Academy Trust, said “This is fantastic news for everyone in our school community and our sincere thanks goes to Steve and his team at 3iDog for generously supporting us, and to Smile Together for making this happen. We pride ourselves on providing a happy, safe, secure and supportive learning environment where every child is special and unique. All our children are encouraged to care for and support one another, so the Brighter Smiles programme fits perfectly with our aspiration for every child to feel that they are part of a vibrant, caring community. A community in which they can feel confident enough to try new things without fear of failure and one in which everybody has something to offer and something to learn”.
Steve explained: “I’ve been working closely with Smile Together for a number of years now as they continually improve and enhance their frontline patient environments as well as their work areas for colleagues. I’m especially proud of the work we’ve done together at their brand new dental centre at Harleigh Road in Bodmin alongside Brady Construction Services who are already a Brighter Smiles supporter. This involvement means I’ve also become acutely aware of the shocking scale of tooth decay in children across the county, and as it’s an entirely preventable issue I was keen to support this Cornish school community and I very much look forward to seeing the difference it will make.”
Paul Critchley, managing director at community interest company Smile Together, creators of Brighter Smiles, explained: “This is great news for local children in so many ways apart from improving their oral health. Our programme demonstrates that they will also have improved confidence and self-esteem and be able to concentrate on their learning and development in those crucial early years. We are thrilled to have this additional support from Steve and his team at 3iDog.”
Brighter Smiles is also backed by organisations such as Cornwall Council, Imerys Minerals, Eco-Bos, Fuel, ITEC Group UK, Robinson Contractor Ltd and Brush-Baby. In the past 12 months almost 4000 children have benefited from Brighter Smiles from around 70 schools and children’s centres. There are 280 schools in Cornwall so if anyone would like to join 3iDog in becoming a supporter of Brighter Smiles in a school in their local community please contact tracy.wilson17@nhs.net
