AS A carefree teenager, Lauren Doherty “lived life to the max”, spending time with friends and looking forward to the future.

It was 2008 when she started work at a nearby college, supporting individuals with visual impairments. But that summer would change Ms Doherty’s life forever.

“It was a summer’s evening in August 2008 and I had been out with a group of my friends in our local town to watch a band play,” she said.

“Some of us went back to a friend’s house and at 4am I set off walking back home. A friend walked with me.

“I don’t know what made me cross the road at the wrong time. But I was hit by a van and I’m now completely paralysed and need everything doing for me.

“I broke my neck and required an operation to stabilise the vertebrae. My pelvis and wrist were also broken. I had a bleed from my aorta requiring a stent and compartment syndrome requiring an operation on my legs.

“I also needed a skin graft on my legs and a tracheostomy for ventilation. I was kept in an induced coma for the first three days and spent three-and-a-half weeks in intensive care.”

It would be a year before the now 30-year-old from Knaresborough left hospital to live with her parents and not until 2013 that she moved to a purpose-built bungalow.

Ms Doherty’s new-found independence inspired her to pursue her dream of speaking about road safety to youngsters.

She said: “In 2016, I visited my first primary school and spoke to a group of ten children. I was grateful for this opportunity as it helped me to gauge the children’s reaction. It was really well received by the children and the staff.”

Since then, Ms Doherty has spoken to more than 3,000 children, with North Yorkshire Police, North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service and North Yorkshire County Council sharing the 30-year-old’s story as part of the Live and Learn campaign.

The campaign is aimed at sixth-form students, who are learning to drive or have recently passed their test.

Ms Doherty added: “My life will never be the same again, and making a life-changing, split-second decision to cross it at the wrong time.

“I hope that by sharing my story, it makes people aware of the impact an accident can have. If my story prevents even one person from experiencing what I have been through, then talking to people about my life and road safety is worthwhile.”