THE bereaved parents of a heroin overdose victim have told a group of students of their anguish at losing their son, and begged them to not to take drugs.

In one of the first anti-drugs schemes of its kind in the country, David and Beverley Dixon were addressing sixth-formers invited to sit through the inquest into the death of 16-year-old David Dixon.

David, who was once a fun-loving schoolboy, overdosed in a bedsit in North Shields a week after first injecting heroin, the inquest in the town was told yesterday.

Police hope that students from Burnside and Willington schools will now tell younger pupils of their experience at the inquest and drive home the dangers of drugs.

Coroner Brian Gallon was told Daniel had been "very hurt" by the separation of his parents ten years earlier, and had fallen into drugs and a life of crime after being bullied.

With his life spiralling out of control, his parents sent him to stay with relatives in Consett, County Durham, in a bid to get him away from the drug scene.

But he fell back into drugs on his return to North Shields, 12 days before his death.

Home Office pathologist Dr Peter Cooper told the inquest that David had not injected a particularly large amount of heroin.

But, because his tolerance to the drug was low, he had fallen unconscious before going into a coma and dying.

Mrs Dixon, of Waverdale Avenue, Walker, Newcastle, said David was a keen footballer and member of Newcastle East Boxing Club, at one stage winning an under-15 championship.

She told the pupils: "This just shows what can happen with drugs and what it can do with your life - no matter who you are. David had everything to live for. He had ambition and was going to join the Army, where he hoped to box.

"You have got to get the message across. One drug always leads to another."

Claire Carrie, 17, said: "We were shocked at what we heard and felt like crying through some of the evidence. If our being here today helps stop one person from using drugs, then it has achieved something."

Mr Gallon recorded a verdict of death by misadventure