Hackney Council is collaborating with leaders of the strictly Orthodox community to tackle a dental crisis among Charedi children.

According to Public Health England, rates of tooth decay in five-year-old Charedim are far higher than among their peers in the wider Hackney community. It claims that just one in five Charedi children brush their teeth twice a day.

The Charedi Health Forum, which facilitates programmes in schools and other communal institutions, said it was working closely with the local council to tackle the problem.

Hackney’s public health team has launched awareness activities within the community to improve the situation.

Health forum chair Rabbi Avrohom Pinter said a number of schools had been involved in sessions promoting dental health.

The next step was to hold tooth-brushing demonstrations in nurseries.

Hackney Council said it had “successful supported” the health forum to run other programmes, for example, to tackle child obesity. The strictly Orthodox community was not resistant to outside advice.

A council spokesperson noted that “recent data collected from Orthodox Jewish schools shows positive health trends, with lower rates of obesity in children in reception and in year six compared to other children in Hackney in the same age group.

“Central to this work is the community’s willingness to work together with the council on issues affecting children’s health and well-being.”