I'm not suggesting putting the clock back to Victorian times, but children need time to play, to dream and to hope - time to have a childhood

George Marsh, chairman Incorporated Association of Preparatory Schools

Speaking to the Incorporated Association of Preparatory Schools' annual conference, Mr Marsh said that children were exposed to more media influences than ever before that pushed them into adopting the attitudes of older teenagers.

"I'm not suggesting putting the clock back to Victorian times, but children need time to play, to dream and to hope - time to have a childhood," said Mr Marsh.

"But they're facing so many consumer-led images of fashion and ideas, on television and in magazines, that push them towards conforming and growing up in a way that means they miss out on being children."

Mr Marsh, who is chairman of the independent primary school association, also argued that schools were in danger of "over-testing" pupils and putting at risk the creativity of young people.

And he urged schools to encourage the kind of imaginative and emotional development that could not be taken as another exam.