A mum whose son nearly died after coming off his bike is calling for parents to make sure their children wear protective helmets. Diane Downing, of West Looe, hopes that her 13- year-old son Sam's horrific accident on December 8 will act as a warning to others, especially after Christmas when many youngsters are riding new bicycles. 'Please, please make them wear helmets,' she said. 'I gave up on constantly telling my children. It was often met with a stream of excuses about why they could not wear them or they would ditch them once out of sight. 'I cannot stress the importance of wearing them. Sam found out the hard way. 'Luckily for him, he lived to tell the tale but your child may not be so lucky.' Sam was out on his paper round at around 7.15am when he came off his bike on the junction of Quay Road and New Road, by the bridge over the river in Looe, hitting his head in the fall. He has no memory of the accident but, despite a police investigation, officers believe he either hit the curb on the bend or a car travelling too close made him wobble and fall off. At first Sam did not seem too badly injured but after being taken to Derriford Hospital in Plymouth his condition worsened. 'It's was terrible,' said Diane, 40. 'It was the slowest journey to Derriford ever.'

Kindness But she is sure that if it was not for the kindness of passers-by who alerted emergency services to her son's accident he would not have been around to celebrate Christmas or his 14th birthday on Monday. 'Special thanks to James Porter and Les Arkell who stopped their vehicle and went to Sam's aid and had the presence of mind to call the emergency services,' she said. 'If it wasn't for these two guys, Sam would have died from his injuries because even though no bones were broken he had received a blow to his head which had caused a bleed to his brain.' At one stage it looked likely that Sam would have to be transferred to Bristol's Royal Hospital for Children, and his family – including brothers Josh, 15, and Logan, five, had no idea if he would be left with brain damage or even survive. But miraculously, his condition stabilised. Within three days he was allowed home and now he has made a full recovery. 'It was such a relief,' said Diane. And now Sam is even back on two wheels after getting a new bike for Christmas to replace the one still being held by police. But there was one important addition to his Christmas stocking – a helmet. Before, Sam often refused to wear a head protector, even hiding his helmet in a bush close to home so his mum had no idea he did not have it on, but now he has learned his lesson. 'The message has got through to Sam now,' said Diane. 'Kids think they're resilient to everything but Sam said, "Now I know that I'm not invincible.'