Students at Abbey College in Ramsey had The Hunts Post’s message to Drive Safe - Save A Life brought home to them by wheelchair-bound Nick Bennett.

Nick, of Papworth Everard, was just 17 when he was driving, overtook two cars and collided with a three-tonne lorry.

Then a keen footballer and skier, he spent 10 months in intensive care, and continues to have speech and mobility problems.

Nick spoke to students about his experiences at Cambridgeshire Fire Service’s Drive 2 Arrive workshop.

The day-long series of activities aimed to encourage youngsters to stay safe behind the wheel and get them thinking about the consequences of speeding or drink-driving.

Organiser and risk manager Martin Ockenden said: “Nick just tells his story. He will just talk to them about what he was like, a semi-professional footballer.

“Being him, he got his first car, a sports model and he drove it too fast and he did not have his seat belt on.

“One day he crashed into a lorry.

“Now he struggles with mobility and his speech is slurred.

“It really is a reality check. He has lost contact with his friends. He is living a life sentence.”