Counsellors are to be sent into schools to combat a sharp rise in mental health problems among children. One in ten youngsters - more than a million - now has a clinically recognisable disorder such as depression, anxiety, anorexia or severe anti-social behaviour, a government inquiry found. And millions more may have 'lower-level' mental health problems that do not warrant a diagnosis but cause concern and put them at risk of struggling at school.Ministers yesterday announced a £20million programme to expand a pilot scheme in which counsellors and other specialist staff set up a base on school premises and help children with problems such as aggressive behaviour and self-harming. Children's minister Beverley Hughes said the scheme could eventually be rolled out to any school where pupils needed it. The government-funded review highlighted research spanning 25 years and found that the prevalence of many mental health problems has doubled since the 1970s.
