A Kent college is leading the fight against legal highs which can potentially kill in an instant.

It comes after a youngster died from what's believed to be legal highs; schoolgirls were taken to hospital after experimenting with the legal drugs and MPs have campaigned for a ban on the substances.

It also follows the heart attack of former Canterbury College student Matt Ford, who nearly died after using the drugs.

Now, the college has introduced a raft of measures to combat the potential threat from the over-the-counter drugs.

These include pop-ups on computer screens; advice in students' diaries and events to raise awareness of the dangers the substances pose.

KentOnline, which is campaigning to crack down on legal highs, spoke to Lut Stewart, director of student support services at the college.

She said: “We are very pro-active in safeguarding students and if there are any concerns such as legal highs there are a number of things that we would do."

The college also works alongside drug and alcohol charity KCA, which goes into schools and college across the county, explaining what legal highs are to young people.

Ms Stewart said: "One of the main initiatives this year is the introduction of enrichment activities including information and talks about legal highs and about drug misuse and alcoholism."

She added: “When we ask for students’ feedback they say that they have really benefited hearing from somebody who really knows what they’re talking about."

Canterbury College was first linked to legal highs when a former student, 17-year-old Matt Ford, suffered a heart attack after taking the substances.

Now staff are keen to ensure all students are aware of the consequences of consuming them.

Ms Stewart said: “All young people should know about legal highs because young people can be taken in by the word ‘legal’ and perhaps they don’t realise that legal highs are substances that can produce similar effects to illegal drugs.”