SCHOOLCHILDREN will be presented with replicas of potentially lethal drugs including freshly-banned 'legal highs' in a radical education initiative.

Help centre The Abingdon Bridge is taking its new 'drug box' into the town's secondary schools, a £1,249 investment funded by the Rotary Club of Abingdon Vesper.

It contains life-like models of toxic substances and information about their associated dangers, which staff bring into schools to help prevent drug use.

Chris Bryan, chairman of The Abingdon Bridge, said: "All research suggests most young people who dabble in drugs have got no idea what they are taking.

"The drug box is to inform young people and give understanding - they can recognise when somebody says 'this is cannabis'.

"There are a lot of drugs that aren't what they say on the tin.

"Knowing that with ketamine there is a chance it will make you incontinent for life - it's a huge wake-up call."

The Abingdon Bridge, which gives advice and support to troubled young people, has taken a drug box into schools before.

Its replacement is updated including with so-called 'legal highs', dangerous substances which were due to be made illegal by the Government but the legislation has been delayed.

Mr Bryan added: "It would be foolish if we said there isn't a problem with legal highs - there is.

"There was an assumption that if they were legal they would be safe, but there can be nothing further from the truth.

"You could buy them online - it's become easily accessible."

Justin Langford, a youth worker at The Abingdon Bridge, said: "The drug box is far better than showing photographs or illustrations – pupils can see what these substances actually look like.

"Sadly, most young people who start taking drugs have no idea what they are taking or what the impact will be. The result can be life threatening."

Paul Thompson, vice president of the rotary club, said: "It is amazing. The young people will learn a lot – and so did we."

Abingdon Town Council leader Sandy Lovatt is chairman of the South and Vale Community Safety Partnership, which works to reduce anti-social behaviour in the area.

He said: "It's an excellent idea. One of the good things about the Bridge is that they use quite young people to go into schools and mentor people, they have got that credibility.

"There's a significant percentage of young people that get caught up in this - we need to protect them without being excessive."

According to South Central Ambulance Service spokeswoman Michelle Archer, 'legal high' patients often act violently and display symptoms including fitting, fast heart rate, choking, vomiting and unconsciousness.

SCAS consultant Mark Ainsworth-Smith added: "We are seeing cases where patients become ill after consuming just three puffs of a ‘legal high’.

"They carry serious health risks and can be fatal.

"Don’t take a ‘legal high’ if you don’t want to risk it taking your life."

The Government planned last week to enforce a blanket ban on ‘any substance intended for human consumption that is capable of producing a psychoactive effect’, including 'legal highs', but the law has not yet come into force.