Children’s Dentistry in Milton Keynes
We believe it is never too early to show your children how to care for their teeth.
We encourage our patients to bring their children with them to our Oakgrove practice from an early age, helping them get use to the sights, smells and sounds of the dental practice.
Children’s Dentistry in Milton Keynes
We believe it is never too early to show your children how to care for their teeth.
We encourage our patients to bring their children with them to the practice from an early age, helping them get use to the sights, smells and sounds of the Oakgrove dental practice.
BOOKING A TREATMENT
Please use the form below for all of your dental treatments, check-ups and and dental hygiene appointments.
OPENING HOURS
Monday 8am – 7:30pm
Tuesday 8am – 7:30pm
Wednesday 8am – 7:30pm
Thursday 8am – 7:30pm
Friday 8am – 5pm
Saturday Closed
Sunday Closed
ADDRESS
Enquire About Childrens Dentistry
Oakgrove Dental Practice
HOW WE LOOK AFTER YOUR CHILDREN'S TEETH
We look forward to welcoming your children
All children up to the age of 11 will be entitled to Free Dental Examinations, Free Preventive Health Instruction, Free X rays and should treatment be necessary, we offer a subsidised scale of charges. For children from the ages of 12-17, there is reduced pricing for all general dental care.
For children without a parent or guardian registered with the practice, a children’s fee price will be charged.
We want your child’s first and subsequent visits to Oakgrove, Milton Keynes to be positive, fun and not something to be anxious or worried about. We also like to reward children who work hard to keep their teeth clean. We can provide brushing charts to record every time they brush their teeth for two minutes in the morning and before they go to bed.
HOW WE LOOK AFTER YOUR CHILDREN'S TEETH
We look forward to welcoming your children
All children up to the age of 11 will be entitled to Free Dental Examinations, Free Preventive Health Instruction, Free X rays and should treatment be necessary, we offer a subsidised scale of charges. For children from the ages of 12-17, there is reduced pricing for all general dental care.
For children without a parent or guardian registered with the practice, a children’s fee price will be charged.
We want your child’s first and subsequent visits to Oakgrove, Milton Keynes to be positive, fun and not something to be anxious or worried about. We also like to reward children who work hard to keep their teeth clean. We can provide brushing charts to record every time they brush their teeth for two minutes in the morning and before they go to bed.
GETTING STARTED
When should I first take my child to the dentist?
Take your child to the dentist when their first baby tooth appears, or by their first birthday, whichever comes first. The NHS and the British Society of Paediatric Dentistry both recommend this, and examinations for children aged 0 to 4 are free at Oakgrove Dental. A first visit is a look and a chat rather than treatment: the dentist lifts the lip to check for early decay, counts the teeth and shows you how much toothpaste to use. Coming this early means your child meets us before anything ever needs doing.
How often should children have a dental check-up?
Children need a dental check-up at least once a year, and many need one every six months. NICE guidance sets the interval for under-18s at 3, 6, 9 or 12 months, and says no child should go beyond 12 months, because decay spreads faster in baby teeth than in adult teeth. The interval your child is given depends on things like whether they have had decay before, how well brushing is going and how often they have sugary snacks. For a higher-risk child, three or six months gives the dentist the chance to stop decay early.
Is NHS dental care available for children, or does it need to be private?
NHS dental treatment is free for everyone under 18 in the UK, and for under-19s in full-time education, so NHS check-ups, fillings and extractions cost nothing for children. Availability is the real issue: many practices hold no NHS openings for new patients, and children are often only taken on where a parent is already registered. Private care is the alternative where no NHS space is open to you. At Oakgrove Dental a child’s examination is free up to age 4, and from £25 for a child aged 5 to 11.
How much does a children's dental appointment cost?
A child’s examination at Oakgrove Dental is free up to age 4, from £25 for ages 5 to 11 and from £30 for ages 12 to 17. An X-ray, where one is needed, is £15. If your child is not registered with us and needs seeing quickly, an emergency appointment is from £75, or from £55 for registered patients. Treatment is quoted after the examination: composite fillings start from £150, and extractions by a general dentist range from £165 to £250 depending on the tooth. Prices may vary depending on location.
My child is scared of the dentist. What can I do?
A frightened child does better when the practice knows in advance, so mention it when you book and prepare at home first. Avoid words like ‘hurt’, ‘needle’ and ‘drill’ even when reassuring, because they plant the idea; say the dentist is going to count the teeth instead. Practise by having your child lie back and open wide while you look in with a torch. Morning appointments usually go better, because children cope less well when tired. Dental teams also use a ‘tell, show, do’ approach, explaining and showing each instrument before using it, so nothing comes as a surprise.
PREVENTION & DAILY CARE
How can I prevent tooth decay in my child's teeth?
Brushing twice a day with fluoride toothpaste and keeping sugary food and drink to mealtimes prevents most childhood tooth decay. The bedtime brush matters most, because saliva flow drops overnight and there is nothing left to wash acid off the teeth. Have your child spit the toothpaste out and not rinse with water, so a protective layer of fluoride stays behind. Snacking is the other half of it: the number of separate sugary moments in a day, rather than the size of them, decides how much acid the enamel has to survive. Fluoride varnish and fissure sealants can add further protection at check-ups.
What toothpaste and brush should my child use?
Use a toothbrush with a small head and soft bristles, and fluoride toothpaste containing 1,350 to 1,500 parts per million of fluoride, which is printed on the box. Children under 3 need only a smear, and a pea-sized amount from ages 3 to 6. A child aged 3 or under with no decay can use a lower-strength children’s paste, but it should still contain at least 1,000ppm, because weaker pastes do not prevent decay as well. Supervise or do the brushing yourself until your child is at least 7, and replace the brush roughly every three months.
What if my child won't let me brush their teeth?
When a child refuses to have their teeth brushed, change the position before you change the routine. For a baby or toddler, sit them on your knee with their head resting back on your chest; for an older child, stand behind them and tilt their head back a little. That is the view a dentist uses, and it gives you steady control. Give your child a second brush to hold so they have some say, and let them go first. If you manage only one proper clean a day, make it the last thing at night. A child who suddenly refuses after brushing happily before may have a sore tooth, so book a check-up rather than pushing on.
How much sugar is safe for my child's teeth?
There is no completely safe amount of sugar for teeth, but the NHS sets daily limits for free sugars: 10g at age 1, 14g for ages 2 to 3, 19g for ages 4 to 6, 24g for ages 7 to 10, and 30g from age 11. Nineteen grams is about five sugar cubes, and one small carton of juice can use most of a 5-year-old’s allowance. For teeth, how often matters more than how much, because every sugary food or drink starts a fresh acid attack on the enamel. Keeping sweets and juice to mealtimes, with only water or milk in between, protects teeth more than shrinking portions.
What are fissure sealants and do children need them?
Fissure sealants are thin coatings painted into the deep grooves on the biting surfaces of the back teeth, sealing out the food and bacteria a toothbrush cannot reach. They go on the first adult molars, which arrive around age 6 or 7, and the second molars at about 12. No drilling or injection is involved: the tooth is cleaned, the coating painted on and set with a light, taking a few minutes. A Cochrane review found sealed molars in 5 to 10 year olds had over 50% less decay on those surfaces after four and a half years. Sealants wear down, so they are checked and topped up at each visit.
What is fluoride varnish and how often do children need it?
Fluoride varnish is a concentrated fluoride coating painted onto the teeth to harden the enamel and slow decay. The NHS recommends it at least twice a year for every child from age 3, and more often for children at higher risk of decay; younger children can have it earlier if the dentist thinks it is needed. It works on baby teeth and adult teeth alike. Application takes a minute or two, with no drilling and no injection, and most children mind the strong taste more than the process. It sits alongside brushing rather than replacing it.
GROWTH, HABITS & DEVELOPMENT
When will my child's baby teeth fall out?
Most children lose their first baby tooth around age 6, usually one of the two bottom front teeth, and the last baby molars go at about 11 or 12. They come out roughly in the order they arrived: bottom front, top front, the ones either side, then first molars, canines and second molars. At around age 6 the first adult molars also come through right at the back, replacing nothing, which makes them easy to miss and among the most likely to decay. Let a wobbly tooth come out on its own, and mention it at a check-up if nothing has loosened by age 7 or 8.
Are baby teeth worth filling if they are going to fall out anyway?
Decayed baby molars are usually worth treating, because they are not lost until around age 11 or 12, so one can become painful or infected years before it is due to come out. An infection in a baby tooth can also damage the adult tooth forming underneath, and losing one early lets neighbouring teeth drift into the gap. Treating it does not always mean drilling: on a back tooth the decay can be sealed in under a preformed metal crown instead. The UK FiCTION trial showed that whichever repair is chosen, it is the prevention put in place alongside it that decides whether the tooth causes trouble later.
Why are my child's new adult teeth more yellow than their baby teeth?
New adult teeth are a slightly darker, yellower shade than baby teeth, and that is normal. Adult enamel is more see-through and the dentine beneath it is thicker and naturally yellow, so more of that colour shows through, while baby teeth have whiter, more opaque enamel. The contrast looks worst while a new adult tooth sits beside a milky-white baby tooth, and it settles as the others are replaced. Whitening is not an option: UK law prohibits whitening products on anyone under 18 except to treat disease. Do mention a single tooth much darker than its neighbours, or white or brown patches, as those can signal an injury or an enamel defect.
When should my child stop using a dummy or thumb sucking?
Most children give up a dummy or thumb on their own between ages 2 and 4, and stopping before the adult front teeth arrive at about 6 usually means no lasting effect. Carrying on past then can tip the upper front teeth forward and hold the back teeth apart, leaving an open bite; prolonged dummy use is also linked to the back teeth crossing over, which will not correct itself. Steady pressure matters more than force, so a thumb resting in the mouth all night does more harm than occasional vigorous sucking. With a dummy, cut down in stages: bedtime only, then none. With a thumb, tackle night-time first and praise dry-thumb mornings rather than telling off slips.
My child's adult teeth are coming through crooked. Do they need braces now?
Crowding is normal as adult teeth come through, and treatment rarely starts straight away. An orthodontic check at about age 7 is worth having, because it catches the problems that are easier to fix early, such as a back tooth biting the wrong way round or an adult tooth heading in the wrong direction. Braces themselves usually begin around age 12, once most adult teeth are through and jaw growth has resolved some crowding by itself. NHS orthodontic treatment is free for under-18s, but only where clinical need is high enough: it is scored on the Index of Orthodontic Treatment Need, normally grade 4 or 5, or grade 3 where appearance is significantly affected.
SAFETY & EMERGENCIES
My child has toothache. What should I do?
Childhood toothache needs a dental appointment straight away, and the NHS advises seeing a dentist if it lasts more than two days. Meanwhile, give children’s paracetamol or ibuprofen at the dose on the packet, offer soft food such as yoghurt, and keep your child from chewing on that side. Do not give aspirin to anyone under 16, and do not have a young child rinse with salt water in case they swallow it. Go to a dentist rather than a GP, as a GP cannot treat teeth. Swelling in the face or jaw, or a fever alongside the pain, means ringing us the same day rather than waiting for a routine slot.
What should I do if my child knocks out a tooth?
A knocked-out adult tooth has the best chance of surviving if it is back in its socket within 20 to 30 minutes. Hold it by the crown, never the root, rinse briefly in milk or water if dirty but do not scrub, then push it in the right way round and have your child bite gently on a clean cloth. If you cannot replace it, keep it in a cup of milk, not water or tissue, and get to a dentist immediately. Never put a baby tooth back, as it can damage the adult tooth forming underneath, though your child should still be seen. Made-to-measure mouthguards prevent most of these injuries in contact sports.
Are X-rays safe for children?
A single dental X-ray gives about 0.005 millisieverts of radiation, roughly the same as one day of the natural background radiation everyone gets from the ground, food and air. The UK average from natural sources is about 2.7 millisieverts a year, so the added dose is very small. There is no routine schedule: children’s X-rays are taken only when there is a clinical reason, such as looking for decay between the back teeth or checking that adult teeth are developing in the right position. The dentist will explain the reason before taking one, and you can ask questions or say no.
Why are regular dental visits important even if my child has no pain?
Decay in children’s teeth is usually painless until it reaches the nerve, so pain is a late sign rather than an early one. Baby teeth have thinner enamel than adult teeth, which lets decay travel to the nerve faster, and a hole that could have been sealed or filled early can end up needing the tooth taken out. Check-ups also cover what a parent cannot see: whether adult teeth are arriving in the right order, whether new back molars need sealing, and how brushing is really going. Bringing your child while nothing hurts is also how they learn the dentist is not somewhere you go only when something is wrong.
WHY CHOOSE OAKGROVE DENTAL PRACTICE?
Complimentary consultation & smile simulation
Enjoy a free Invisalign consultation, complete with a 3D Itero scan to visualize your smile transformation before committing.
Comprehensive treatment package for the perfect smile
Benefit from included X-rays, photographs, free removable retainers, and teeth whitening for a complete smile makeover.
Flexible payment options available
Choose from 0% dentist finance for up to 12 months or in-house payment plans to suit your budget.
Trusted local experts in Invisalign®
As the only MiSmile member in Milton Keynes, we’ve helped create over 10,000 stunning Invisalign smiles.
WHY CHOOSE OAKGROVE DENTAL PRACTICE?
Complimentary consultation & smile simulation
Enjoy a free Invisalign consultation, complete with a 3D Itero scan to visualize your smile transformation before committing.
Comprehensive treatment package for the perfect smile
Benefit from included X-rays, photographs, free removable retainers, and teeth whitening for a complete smile makeover.
Flexible payment options available
Choose from 0% dentist finance for up to 12 months or in-house payment plans to suit your budget.
Trusted local experts in Invisalign®
As the only MiSmile member in Milton Keynes, we’ve helped create over 10,000 stunning Invisalign smiles.
OTHER TREATMENTS AT OAKGROVE DENTAL PRACTICE
