13 March 2016

Leading oral health charity the British Dental Health Foundation is excited to announce that it will be changing its name to the Oral Health Foundation.

The change will come into effect on Monday 4 April and follows a growing demand the charity has had in recent years to deliver greater support, information and education on oral health throughout the world.

The charity's name change reflects the significantly broader reach and influence it has established globally since its formation, and will allow them to further strengthen their ultimate mission of providing better oral health for all.

Announcing the name change last night at the Royal Society for Public Health in London, President of the newly renamed Oral Health Foundation, Janet Goodwin, explained why the charity decided to make the change.

Janet said: "Since the charity was formed we have undergone remarkable progression and development as an organisation; this has been particularly evident since the turn of the 21st century.

"In this time we have taken on some challenging and exciting new projects and developed many key partnerships; as well as expanding our work internationally.

"Due to this, we felt it was time that we had an identity which not only reflected the important work, reach and diversity we have achieved over the last 45 years, but also one which will enable us to continue to move forward, build many more effective partnerships and develop stronger ties between dental and health professionals and the public around the world.

"Our new name reflects this perfectly and, alongside a reinvigorated focus, we are all really excited about what is ahead of us."

Chief Dental Officer, Dr Sara Hurley, was delighted to hear of the name change as it aligns the charity closely with her mission to ensure that oral health is recognised and delivered as an integral element of all health and social care pathways. Good oral health is obtainable and sustainable, it underpins good health outcomes, a sense of wellbeing and a quality of life.

According to the charity, their new name will help reach a far larger audience and will further enable them to deliver important projects to even more individuals and communities around the world.

Dr Nigel Carter OBE, Chief Executive of the soon-to-be Oral Health Foundation, added: "For more than four decades our biggest strength has been providing education and information on oral health to millions of people throughout the United Kingdom, so it only makes sense for us to expand and try deliver this on a global scale. The translation of our website into 9 major world languages now makes our oral health education material available in the native tongue of over 40% of the world's population and our accredited products can be seen in some 50 countries.

"Through campaigns such as National Smile Month and Mouth Cancer Action Month we have continually been successful in promoting and championing the values of good oral health and wellbeing, while our accreditation programme remains an instrumental resource in increasing consumer confidence in the dental products people buy.

"Under our new brand our focus and commitment will remain as strong as ever, and our core mission and goals will remain much the same.

"We will continue our important work as a leading international charity aiming to improve oral health for all, and tackle the harm caused by oral diseases - many of which are entirely preventable.

"We will always remain passionate and committed to providing expert, independent and impartial advice and education on all aspects of oral health and ensure that it is delivered to those who need it most."