The NHS is spending more than £1 million a month on so-called “chill pills” that help to calm hyperactive children, figures show.

Doctors in Britain wrote almost 7,500 prescriptions a week for Ritalin, the drug that is used commonly when attention deficit hyperactivity disorder has been diagnosed in children.

The treatment costs about £200 a year per child and is likely to cost taxpayers £12.48 million this year, figures obtained under the Freedom of Information Act have revealed.

It has been estimated that the total annual cost of the therapy, including additional costs of assessment and follow-up, would escalate to £500 to £1,000 per child, according to figures from the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE).

Andrea Bilbow, of the National Attention Deficit Disorder Information and Support Service, said: “Our studies have shown that about 20 per cent of parents choose not to give their children medication.”

Blair Gibbs, spokesman for the TaxPayers’ Alliance, said: “New drugs are already putting enormous cost pressures on the NHS, so we have to be sure we are spending budgets properly.”

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