A Driver has been warned he faces jail for causing a crash in which two teenage sisters were badly hurt.

David Andrew Mitchell, 20, will be sentenced at Teesside Crown Court next month after he admitted a charge of dangerous driving.

The former RAF serviceman crashed his Vauxhall Astra into a tree on the Durham Way South industrial estate, in Newton Aycliffe, County Durham, in July last year.

A 15-year-old passenger was left in a critical condition with head injuries and her 18-year-old sister suffered a broken back.

Two other 15-year-old passengers, as well as Mitchell, also needed hospital treatment for their injuries.

Teesside Crown Court was told that Mitchell, of Greenlea Garth, Newton Aycliffe, was speeding, swerving and skidding before the crash.

His barrister Aisha Wadoodi said he accepted he was not driving properly and there was a degree of showing off.

The case was adjourned for the preparation of pre-sentence reports, and Mitchell was freed on bail until the week commencing May 2.

Judge Guy Whitburn, QC, told him: "This is a serious matter and the first consideration one must have is 'has it crossed the custody threshold' and my feeling is that it does."

The judge described his driving as "protracted showing off with disastrous consequences that could have been fatal".

Miss Wadoodi said Mitchell was pleading guilty to prevent any further distress to the victims and their families by forcing them into court to give evidence.