THE inquest has opened into the death of a driving instructor who died after his car was in collision with a mini-bus.

Colin George Brown, of Lancaster Road, Hartlepool died on Thursday on the B1280 near Sheraton, a village a few miles to the North-West of Hartlepool.

Mr Brown, a former driving instructor who was most recently working for a landscaping company near Eaglescliffe, Stockton leaves two sons, one who lives in County Durham and another who lives in Australia.

He was driving a Citroen which collided with a single-deck Arriva bus. A total of 11 passengers received minor injuries.

It is thought Mr Brown was performing a U-turn in the road at the time of the collision at about 5.35pm. He was trapped in the silver Citroen for 20 minutes before being cut free and taken to hospital in Middlesbrough where he died.