An increasing number of schoolchildren are suffering from mental illness and depression - leading to difficulties in the Island's classrooms, Education and Development Minister Paula Cox has claimed.

She said her department was working with the Ministry of Health and Family Services to figure out how best to deal with the growing problem, and how their needs can be met.

During the education budget debate in Parliament on Friday, Ms Cox said: "The Ministry of Education and Development and schools continues to be challenged to meet the complex and diverse needs of students.

"One such group of students is those who have severe mental health challenges. These students suffer from severe social and emotional stresses, including depression and suicide ideation.

"Evidence suggests that there are a growing number of school-aged students who suffer from depression. When in crisis, education is not the priority for this group of students. They are in need of specialised therapeutic support from mental health clinicians. "We will explore how best these children's needs can be met."

The Minister said schools were not equipped or responsible for meeting the severe mental health needs of students, and she was therefore meeting with Health Minister Nelson Bascome to see how best to proceed with this initiative.

Health Minister Mr. Bascome said last night that an analysis of children with mental health problems had been done and Government, in return, had stepped up its treatment and action process.

"When we had challenges in the past regarding children with depression or other mental and emotional challenges, we tended to focus on making the child better, but now we are looking at the total family unit," he said.

"We have the Psycho Educational Centre, Bermuda Youth Counselling Services and a number of para professionals that go into the classrooms and deal with the situations."

But Mr. Bascome said there were many and varied reasons why children suffered from depression or like illnesses.

Some may be hereditary, but he said often social ills played a role, although which one was the most prevalent he was unable to automatically say yesterday.

"There are a mixture of things, in terms of causes, including the family break down, the use of drugs, abuse, both mental and physical, and even peer pressure," said the Health Minister.

"Neglect, both physical and emotional, may also play a part. It is definitely concerning to us. We have to service these kids, and most times we end up taking on the total family because it's not a matter of just removing the child from the home, but working with the family to give them support, so they can become a total unit."

But Mr. Bascome said other mental disorders, such as Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD), were also on the increase and putting greater strain on the classrooms.

But he said the growth of ADD was a world wide phenomenon, not just linked to Bermuda.

"ADD is a challenge because no one has been able to pin point exactly why or where it happens, and it puts a strain on the classroom and the teachers.

"But it's important to remember that a lot of these ADD children are extremely bright - they simply need to be taught in a different way.

"We have a number of joint initiatives between the Education and Health Ministries to help deal with these issues, and they go way beyond just communicating. We are trying to get to the causes of the issues, and then deal with families to see if they can be addressed."

Eddie Fisher, the co-ordinator of the Child Watch group, said he believed the break down of the family, and its knock-on effects, played a large part in depression as a whole.

But he also said changes in society, that saw more children indoors playing on computer games and watching television, was not conducive to a good mental state.

And he believed more adults, as well as children, were succumbing to depression and mental illness.

He said: "There is more stress in life today than ever before, and I think it is taking its toll.

"The almighty dollar has taken over, and I think people are spending less and less time with their children.

"I think break-ups of marriages and unhappy homes are the root causes of the majority of depression cases in young people.

"Years' ago, we used to be able to spend so much more time with our children, but now a tremendous amount of adults are out working extra jobs or recovering from their first job. There is simply not enough family time."

Mr. Fisher called for a survey to be carried out, and said Bermuda experts, not people from overseas, needed to figure out how the problem should be tackled.

"The divorce rate, I think, is affecting children to a greater and greater degree," he added.

"Bermuda needs to address this whole issue of family life. There has even been a break down in sporting activities for children and hobbies. Nobody seems to have hobbies anymore, but when we were younger we learned all those from our parents and siblings. I'm in Big Brothers and Sisters and I'm appalled at the lack of interest in sports.

"Computer games, I think, are built in depressants."