The NHS are advising schools to encourage parents to provide their children with a high-factor sunscreen to cut the risk of skin cancer in later life.

The use of suncreen and hats at break times and after school will minimise over exposure to the sun as well as avoiding sunburn as people who are sunburnt at a young age have a higher risk of skin cancer, experts have said.

Several schools have recently been criticised by parents for banning children from bringing sun cream to school for fear they will pass it on to others who may be allergic or get it into their eyes.

Skin safety warning: using suncreen and hats at play times will help children avoid sunburn, those who are sunburnt early on have a higher risk of skin cancer

But the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) have released guidance which says staff should encourage the use of sun cream, not ban it.

Critics of the Government’s controversial health watchdog – whose main role is to ration NHS drugs – may say this is again far beyond NICE’s remit after they advised schools to teach sex education in schools to pupils aged five and up earlier this year.

On the same day it rejected a life-extending drug for non-small cell lung cancer on the grounds of cost effectiveness.

Clinical and public health director at NICE Professor Peter Littlejohns told the Daily Telegraph: ‘The risk of developing skin cancer can be gently reduced by taking simple actions, such as opting to stay in the shade, wearing protective clothing in the sun, avoiding the sun during the day and wearing high factor sunscreen.

‘The draft guidance includes a number of practical recommendations.

‘It provisionally recommends that schools should encourage children and young people to apply sun screen and seek shade during breaks outside.’

Cases of potentially deadly melanoma skin cancer have tripled since the 1970s in Britain and the disease causes 2,500 deaths a year.

Skin cancer accounts for one in three of all cancers in Britain and many people do not even know what they symptoms or warning signs are.

The guidance is encouraged to help councils, school nurses, GPs and public health specialists develop information campaigns and policies on preventing skin cancer.

Education and leisure institutes should ‘ensure children and young people do not get sunburnt and encourage parents to provide high factor sunscreen for their children to use while at school as well as providing employees with clear guidelines on how to help children and young people apply sunscreen or how best children can help each other apply it.’