Legal Update: Court Report - Dental X-rays in age assessments

This was a recently decided case regarding age assessments. In this case, the local authority asked for an order from the court confirming that a child, subject to an age dispute, agree to various assessments being carried out. This included a further age assessment, psychiatric assessment and dental X-ray assessment.

The concept of X-raying children’s teeth to determine age is a controversial one. X-rays of dentistry cannot accurately determine someone’s age. Chief medical officers and children’s commissioners have previously expressed strong reservations over the use of dental X-rays for the purposes of age assessment. The British Dental Association has recently stated that dental radiographs are inaccurate and furthermore, that taking X-rays that have no clinical benefit is unethical. There are also issues over consent and whether an unaccompanied child, with no parent or other person with parental responsibility to consult with, can meaningfully consent in these circumstances.