THE tragic deaths of two young people in drowning accidents inspired a Darlington entrepreneur to design a safety feature on his latest app.

Former jump-jockey Andrew Bartlett started working on the feature on his socialising app RoarApp after hearing of the death of Lee Brown, from Stockton, whose body was recovered in the Tees two weeks after going missing on a night out last year.

Mr Brown, 24, went missing after a party on the Teesside Princess boat in Stockton, and was last seen near the River Tees Watersports Centre.

RoarApp, which identifies surrounding bars and clubs, has now launched its unique safety feature that aims to prevent friends becoming isolated on a night out.

The move comes in response to the Royal Life Saving Society (RLSS), the UK’s drowning prevention charity, launching its national campaign, Don’t Drink and Drown, this week.

Mr Bartlett, 20, a jockey-turned-businessman, was joined by RLSS ambassador Jackie Roberts at the weekend, close to the spot where her 20-year-old daughter Megan drowned after falling into the River Ouse in York when walking home after a night out in January 2014.

RLSS’s campaign, which runs throughout December, warns drinkers to act responsibly near water and make sure they and their friends avoid walking home near water.

Mr Bartlett said: “The RoarApp recognises your friend’s movements outside of the group’s radius. The app picks up on this and alerts the rest of the group to a friend’s last known location.

“Many friends on a night out get separated but in some situations, too much time has passed for the group to notice and for this reason, I urge people to use the safety aspect of this app.”

RLSS said that last year, one fifth of all adult drowing victims had alcohol in their bloodstream, and 67 per cent of 18-21 year-old accidental drowning victims had been drinking.

Mrs Roberts said: “Since losing Megan to drowning I have been actively involved in drowning prevention. The Don’t Drink and Drown campaign is something close to my heart and I hope that everyone who’s out celebrating the festive period will take note of the campaign key messages – let’s avoid any more tragedies wherever possible.”

For more information on the campaign visit www.rlss.org.uk