Guideline Development Group2013-07-152013-07-152012http://hdl.handle.net/10147/296000In the Republic of Ireland, the Health Service Executive (HSE), which is the national authority responsible for health and personal social services, has statutory responsibility to make dental services available, free of charge, to children under the age of 16.2-5 The focus of this guideline is on the oral health assessment of school-aged children as part of these state-funded services. These services are currently provided by the HSE Public Dental Service. In the Republic of Ireland, the minimum age at which a child can start school is four, although most children are age five at school entry. The upper age limit for entitlement to state-funded oral health services for children is 15. In this guideline, the terms „school-aged children‟ or „school children‟ cover the age range 4–15 years, and we use „age 5‟ when referring to children in Junior Infants class. The term „oral health assessment‟ refers to the process of identifying children who would benefit from dental services. This guideline is the fourth in a series of evidence-based guidelines developed for the HSE Public Dental Service and should be read with reference to the other guidelines in the series.6-8 While this guideline deals specifically with school-aged children, guidance on the early identification of high caries risk preschool children is contained in the guideline Strategies to prevent dental caries in children and adolescents.7 Recommendations on the use of topical fluorides and pit and fissure sealants for caries prevention can be found in the corresponding guidelines.enCHILDCHILD HEALTHGuideline