A GRIEVING father whose son committed suicide has appealed to other depressed young people to seek help.

Mark Newman, pictured, was found hanged in woodland, in Kempshott, by dog walkers on August 26, after telling friends he had made several attempts to take his life the day before, an inquest heard.

The inquest, held at Basingstoke Magistrates’ Court, heard how the 22-year-old painter and decorator, of Kemp-shott Lane, Basingstoke, had spoken about problems with depression in the past.

Mr Newman’s close friend, Kimberley Newman, said in a statement read that he had confided in her by text message the day before his death, and had said he felt worthless, wanted to die and that he did not want to carry on feeling the way he did.

Concerned, she spoke with him several times, and he told her he had tried to hang himself, but was now at home.

She said: “I said ‘you are a really nice person. Think about your mum and the people who care for you’.”

She added: “I was really concerned for his welfare. He was crying, he said ‘I really am sorry’. I said ‘you should go and see someone’. He agreed with me. He said: ‘I’m going to bed now’. That was the last time I heard from him.”

The inquest also heard, in the statements from Ms Newman and his girlfriend Kelsey Heynes, that Mr Newman took recreational drugs like ketamine.

His girlfriend also said in her statement that Mr Newman was a fun person who “always had a smile on his face”. However, she added he had “seemed open and closed at the same time”.

She said when she spoke to him two days before his death, he was slurring his words and later seemed on the verge of tears.

She thought he had taken diazepam, and said: “I firmly believe that these issues were ingrained. The amount of diazepam in his system was what led him to make this decision now.”

Tests revealed therapeutic levels of diazepam in Mr Newman’s system and 60mg of alcohol per 100ml of blood, below the drink-drive limit. Medical records did not reveal a history of mental health problems or treatment for depression.

North East Hampshire Coroner Andrew Bradley, recording a verdict of suicide, said Mr Newman was “clearly a troubled soul, the nature of the trouble we don’t know”.

Mr Newman’s family have launched an appeal to raise money for two memorial benches which will have the number of advice charity The Samaritans on them.

His father Peter Ward, of Falcon Fields, Tadley, told The Gazette that he wanted people to seek help for their problems.

He said the family had no inkling that their son was feeling depressed, adding: “We love him and we miss him. What we’re trying to promote is that help is only a phone call away if you have got depression. Just look for help – sometimes it’s more than friends you need.”

The Samaritans are available to help anyone in any type of distress on 08457 90 90 90.