A GRIEVING mother today demanded answers after her teenage son was found hanging at the detention centre where he was being held.

Adam Rickwood, 14, from Burnley, died after being found in his room at the Hassockfield Centre, in Consett, County Durham, at around midnight yesterday.

He had been sent to the secure training unit by the courts after allegedly breaching bail while accused of a wounding offence.

The national Youth Justice Board has now launched an investigation into the death, which is not being treated as suspicious, and vowed that lessons would be learned if faults in the system were highlighted.

Today, Adam's mother Carol Pounder said he was supposed to be on 15-minute suicide watch after having threatened to kill himself weeks earlier.

But she said when she arrived in County Durham to identify her son's body yesterday morning, she doubted it had been implemented.

Mrs Pounder, 36, of Harold Street, said: "The cuts were so deep into his neck that he must have been there much longer than 15 minutes and I want to know why."

Attempts were made by staff at the centre to revive the teenager, who had emotional and behavioural problems and who last attended Windsmoor House School, in Spring Lane, Blackburn.

He was later taken to Durham's University Hospital where he was later confirmed dead.

Mrs Pounder said she had been called by staff on Sunday to tell her there had been "an incident" and that

Adam had had to be restrained and would not be calling her that night as he normally would as he was upset.

She added: "I tried to tell them something would happen, he was not happy there at all.

"I want a full investigation and, more importantly, why he wasn't being checked every quarter of an hour as he was supposed to be."

Mrs Pounder said Adam's solicitor was due to go to judge and chambers yesterday and, if all went well, he could have been coming home.

She is being comforted at the family home by Adam's step-father John, and three sisters - Sarah, 18; Sharon, 16, and Laura, 12.

Mrs Pounder added: "He could have been here now. He was no angel, he was a little monkey but anyone who knew him knew he was always polite and had a real heart of gold."

Adam was one of 43 teenagers at the privately-run centre which caters for 14- to 17-year-olds.

A post mortem examination to establish the cause of death was due to be carried out yesterday.

The secure site is one of only three secure training centres in the country.

Ellie Roy, chief executive of the Youth Justice Board, said yesterday: "In accordance with our serious incidents procedure, an investigation will be launched immediately in co-operation with the Prison and Probation Ombudsman and the Commission for Social Care inspection.

"In addition, the board's regional manager will be at Hassockfield STC on duty 9am to 5pm on weekdays until further notice.

"We will be in contact with the family at the earliest opportunity to explain the actions we are taking and to invite them to meet with me and other members of the board.

"I would like to offer my sincere sympathy to Adam's family. We will do everything we can to help ensure that the circumstances of his tragic death are made known so that any lessons that need to be learnt will be."