A CHRISTCHURCH teenager is facing up to a year hobbling around on crutches after an accident shattered his leg.

Richard Jowett was involved in a collision with a vehicle while on his scooter and has had to have a steel pin inserted into his right leg.

With the 16-year-old's sixth form studies at The Grange due to begin in a matter of weeks, he fears his injuries could deal a major blow to his education and career dreams. He says he's unsure if he'll be able to withstand the physical rigours demanded of doing the GNVQ in engineering he was due to start.

Richard, of Stroud Lane in Mudeford, was on his way home at about 10.30pm on August 7, when he was involved in an accident along Purewell Road which saw him thrown from his scooter and flipped onto the hard concrete kerb.

He spent more than a week in Poole Hospital, is still in pain and is now facing months of physiotherapy.

"All I remember is flying through the air and hitting the kerb and hearing a bang," he said. "My femur snapped in two. The doctor says it could take up to a year to heal properly and I'm very worried about the problems this could cause my studies because I'll need to be on my feet a lot and then working as an engineer.

"My GNVQ only lasts a year."

Mum Marie said: "We're very worried and don't know how he will get through it. It just doesn't seem fair."

Luckily for Richard, a school friend living nearby heard the crash and came rushing out.

When she saw Richard injured on the ground she phoned his parents to let them know.

Richard had only had his 50cc Motorhispania Furia, a birthday present, for a month.

First published: August 19, 2005