Government plans for mental health support teams in a third of schools in England by 2022-23 lack ambition and need to be stepped up, UK MPs have heard.
Children's wellbeing expert Lord Layard urged the Commons education committee to push for a national rollout before the end of this Parliament.
He also said only a third of children with diagnosable mental ill health get support from specialist NHS services.
The figure was "shocking" and the situation was "unbelievable", he said.
The government aims to have 400 mental health support teams covering a third of pupils by 2023.