A schoolboy was left fighting for his life after he and two friends took legal highs.

The 15-year-old had to be resuscitated by medics as a result of taking the substance and was admitted to intensive care in a critical condition.

His two friends also needed hospital treatment after taking the legal high, which is thought to be called ‘25i’.

The three boys who all attend the Burgate School in Fordingbridge were in a park in Salisbury called Queen Elizabeth Gardens when they took the substance on Friday afternoon.

They have since all been discharged from hospital and are recovering.

Fellow pupils at the Burgate school were gathered into an assembly to inform them of the incident and school leaders have issued advice and information to parents to reinforce the warnings around the dangers of legal highs.

Deputy headteacher Paddy Padfield described the episode as “harrowing and upsetting” for the school community.

In a letter to parents he said: “Year 11 were called to an assembly this morning to explain the facts as we understand them about this incident. “We have been factual and clear about the situation as students need to have the dangers of this and other like substances reinforced.

“I write to raise your awareness to this issue as we have informed the police and called upon theirs and the local authority’s support to bolster further our drugs education programmes in immediate response to this incident. We wish to be very clear that we will support the police in any way we can in their investigation into this incident.”

Wiltshire police have also issued advice as a result of the incident involving the three boys and have urged young people not to take legal highs.

Insp Dave Minty said: "These drugs may be so-called legal highs but there is no way of knowing what chemicals are in these substances and what the consequences of taking them will be."

The Daily Echo has been running our ‘Say No to Legal Highs’ campaign in a bid to raise awareness of the dangers of taking substances and calling for tighter legislation banning the dangerous drugs.

Next month a new law comes into force which is aimed at placing a complete ban on producing or supplying any substance intended for human consumption that can produce a psychoactive effect, unless it has been specifically identified under the Psychoactive Substances Act.