The parents of a Wairarapa high school student will be prosecuted for failing to ensure the child's attendance at school after years of ongoing truancy issues.

Prime Minister John Key said youth suicide statistics released today were damning and the Government needed to do better.

The number of youths taking their own lives has surged by more than 40 per cent, and the suicide of a child under nine has been recorded for the first time.

Researchers say dope use by young people can mess with the complex changes going on inside their heads.

An expert advisory group set up by the Children's Commissioner recommends all low-decile schools offer pupils free food in an immediate effort to tackle child poverty. The programme would be like the Food for Kids scheme run in 223 low-decile schools