IT was when Andrew Johnson’s marriage started to break down that he began turning to drink.

Now, some five years later, he’s completely kicked his habit and is ready to start his life afresh.

Mr Johnson was one of 30 pupils taking part in a rather different graduation at the Jacqueline du Pre building of St Hilda’s College on Friday.

Along with his 29 colleagues, Mr Johnson, 48, from Wolvercote, was celebrating getting his life back on track with the help of drug and alcohol rehabilitation charity SMART.

He said: “It started off with one glass of wine and then it became pretty much anything I could get my hands on.

“I got into a drunken brawl just two and a half years ago and the police referred me to SMART via probation.

“I had lost everything. I lost my job and I was told that if I continued to drink I would have six months to live.

“It has been a life saver. It’s been good for my self-esteem.”

Mr Johnson, who said the stress of his marriage breakdown sparked his problems with alcohol, is now set to become a mentor with SMART.

Peter Corcoran, 47, from Bicester, was also graduating from SMART’s Portal Programme, a 12-week course which aims to give disadvantaged adults the opportunity to learn skills and get back into work.

Mr Corcoran was homeless for a year when he was 17 and has been unemployed for 15 years. He was also addicted to stimulant drugs.

He said: “I went away from school with nothing and to bring my wife and mother here today is fantastic.

“I became addicted through the lifestyle I was living, the people I was living with and just going out to party.”

Mr Corcoran kicked his habit some 10 years ago and decided to become a mentor with the SMART programme.

Terry Gilfoyle, SMART’s partnership manager and a former tutor on the course, said: “To see them come out the other end today and go on to lead very productive lives reinforces why I do this job.”

Since being established in 1996, SMART has helped some 400 people through their addictions.