A post mortem on 14-year-old Dane Edgar revealed he had traces of diazepam, temazepam, ecstasy, Piriton, and opiate substitute methadone in his blood.

His body was found in the bedroom of his friend's house in Newbiggin, where he had stayed the previous night.

Dane had been staying at Reavley House in Bedlington, a Northumberland County Council care facility for young people, but still had regular contact with his mother Angela Williams, and often visited her at the family home on Katherine Street, Ashington.

He had been taken into care in 1999 at his mother's request, as she was concerned he was getting 'out of control'.

By summer 2006, Dane no longer wanted to be in a foster home and was keen for a placement at Reavley House, which meant he could have more contact with his family and friends.

Ms Williams told an inquest at Morpeth County Court that she'd had problems with her four older sons, and that Dane copied their behaviour.

"Because his brothers wouldn't go to school, then he was saying 'well why should I'," she said.

"He looked up to his brothers, and was influenced by them.

"He got in with the wrong crowd, and seemed to be taking some sort of drugs, but he never discussed it with me."

On December 23 a number of people had witnessed Dane stumbling around, dribbling, and slurring his words.

He went to stay with a friend in Newbiggin at around 11pm that night, but his body was found the next morning.

Despite efforts to resuscitate him, he was pronounced dead by paramedics.

Ms Williams said she had repeatedly asked for Dane to be put in a secure unit as his drug-taking worsened.

But Ivan Waters, the county council's social work team manager within the childrens services, said: "It's a very Draconian step to place a child in secure accommodation, because the child is completely removed from the community.

"Sometimes it's quite successful, but at some point they have to return to the community, and they might return to the same social group as before."

In recording a verdict of misadventure, Cororner Ian McCreath said: "This is an isolated incident in Northumberland where a very street-wise 14-year-old ended up dying from drug misuse."