The parents of a young man found dead in a lake say he was let down by mental health services when he had been “crying out for help”.

Nineteen-year-old Brian Anderson, of St Benedict Road, Snodland, was found dead at Leybourne Lakes on August 22. A post mortem found he had drowned.

But his parents, Brian and Lesley Anderson, believe their son might have still been alive had mental health staff taken his cries for help more seriously.

Five months before his death, Brian took an overdose and was taken to Priority House at Maidstone Hospital.

Mr Anderson said: “We begged them to section him, to help him sort out his head, but we were told he didn’t need to be sectioned and was attention-seeking. They let Brian down.

“He was a kid crying out for help. As parents we’d done what we could, but we aren’t trained in that sector. Whatever we could we tried to do for him but we feel so let down. He might have still been here. I feel that this is going to happen again and again to other families.”

Described as an “affectionate and good-hearted boy” who liked art and computer games, Brian, who was close to his younger sister Lisa, had attended St Katherine’s School, Snodland, and moved on to nearby Holmesdale Technology College aged 11.

Although a popular boy, Mr and Mrs Anderson, from Gravesend, claimed their son suffered bullying while at Holmesdale.

On leaving at 16, however, the couple say he changed, and became more outgoing and able to fight back, but also more prone to depression began self harming.

Mr Anderson said: “He was such a nice boy. Anyone in need of help, anyone getting bullied, he would intervene because of what he went through himself, like a knight in shining armour sometimes.”

Mrs Anderson added: “He was no angel – at least, he was an angel until he turned 16. But we had some funny times with him.”

Just over a month before his death, Brian’s depression lifted when he became a father to daughter Alex Clara, on whom he doted.

The week of his death, the couple were told Brian, who had been on anti-depressants for 18 months, had gone missing and his wallet found at Leybourne Lakes. In a tragic irony, they went to the lakes to look for their son, and stood for some time at the spot where his body was later recovered by police on August 22.

His funeral service at Vinters Park Crematorium, Maidstone, last Friday was attended by dozens of friends. Among the mourners was a Larkfield man, who had met Brian at the lakes on August 18 and spent an hour talking to him and trying to calm him down. Brian’s ashes will be buried in a family plot at Snodland cemetery.

Mr Anderson said he hoped mental health managers would take on board the family’s concerns.

“I think Brian experienced things that he wasn’t able to cope with. We have all had experiences and have had to cope with them but unfortunately Brian didn’t have the mechanisms to deal with them at the time.

“They need to try and listen to the parents as well. They don’t interview the parents at all. I just feel so sad that there are so many youngsters out there like that.”

An inquest into his death has been opened and adjourned. Police are not treating it as suspicious.

A Kent and Medway NHS and Social Care Partnership Trust spokesman said: “We were saddened to hear of Brian’s death and would like to pass on our condolences to Brian’s family. We understand the matter is now in the hands of the coroner and as such we are unable to pass further comment on this case at this time.”

Executive head teacher of Holmesdale Technology College, Ian Hobson, said: “Brian was a very successful student, who became a prefect in Year 11 and got some very good GCSE results.

“There were some minor problems [with bullying] when he first started at the school, which were dealt with effectively at the time by the head teacher. We don’t tolerate bullying at this school.”