Almost a quarter of children are starting primary school in England with rotten teeth, according to a new report.

Figures from Public Health England (PHE) show that more than 160,000 five-year-olds - or 23.3 per cent - have dental decay when they start school.

PHE's National Dental Epidemiology Programme for England shows that, while there have been marked improvements in the proportion of youngsters who show signs of dental decay, there are still 164,000 new primary school pupils with rotten teeth.

Around 17,000 of these youngsters have been forced to have decayed teeth removed. Tooth extraction often requires a hospital stay and a child being put under general anaesthetic.

Figures from the 2017 report show that in one corner of England - Tower Hamlets in London - 7.2 per cent of five-year-olds have undergone tooth extraction. Across the country, the average is 2.4 per cent.