Parents should have lessons provided by the government on how to raise their children, states Britain’s leading public health expert.

Professor John Ashton, outgoing president of the Faculty of Public Health (FPH), said children were neglected by some schools and parents.

He said the state should help stop children being crippled by conditions such as anxiety, anorexia and obesity.

The FPH has released a report calling for mental health improvements.

It says: “Mental, emotional or psychological problems account for more disability than all physical health problems put together.

“Although we cannot say yet exactly how much of the burden of mental illness could be prevented, we know prevention is possible.”

One in 10 children aged five to 16 years had a mental health problem that warranted support and treatment, the report said.

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