A Labour Government will tackle the emerging mental health crisis, meaning teachers have time to teach.

Daniel Zeichner has welcomed the plan to revolutionise young people’s mental health with a qualified counsellor in every school.

The number of children experiencing mental health problems is increasing, with one in eight 5 to 19 year olds diagnosed with at least one mental health disorder in 2017.

An estimated 95 per cent of teachers believe that they have taught a child experiencing anxiety, while 60 per cent believe that at least one of the children they have taught are self-harming.

Daniel Zeichner said: “Week in week out I hear about the terrible stresses young people are going through. These issues often come to light at school but at the moment too many children can’t access the mental health support they need. There are long health waiting lists and what little support there was in schools has often been cut due to budget constraints while demand continues to grow. This means teachers and teaching assistants are faced with dealing with a whole range of issues they have not got the specialist training to deal with. That’s why I am delighted with this plan we start treating mental health as seriously as physical health. Qualified counsellors in every school will mean teachers can concentrate on teaching and young people will get the help they need instead of the Tory way of storing up problems for the future.”