IT is every parent’s worst fear that their child will start taking drugs.

But that is what happened to Pauline and Mick Holcroft, the mother and step-father of Rachel Whitear.

The once promising Aylestone High School student from Withington was found dead in a Devon bedsit in May 2000 from a heroin overdose.

After years of reliving the horrors of the 21-year-old’s death through the exhumation of her body and two inquests, Pauline and Mick are again spreading the story of Rachel in a bid to reach out to young people to stop them making the same mistakes she did.

Last week, Pauline and Mick gave a talk at Queen Elizabeth Humanities College in Bromyard, where the Mick works as a teaching instructor.

They talked year 10 students through Rachel’s life, from her background as a “bubbly and bright” child through to her “sad and tragic demise”.

They also discussed the impact on the family and showed pupils Rachel’s Story, a film made about their daughter.

Pauline also told the students to choose their friends and associates carefully.

“They may have more influence on your future than you can possibly imagine,” she said.

Read this week's Hereford Times for the full interview with Pauline.

  • Two Hereford teengers were taken to hospital earlier this month after inhaling butane gas.