The grieving mum of a tragic Baildon student is backing calls for improved safety on the banks of the river where he was swept to his death.

Gavin Terry, 19, fell into the River Aire after a night out with friends. His body was discovered by workmen more than two months after he disappeared.

West Yorkshire Police believe he slipped into the river in Riverside Court, off The Calls, in Leeds city centre, which had been the scene of another tragic accident in 2007.

Almost a year to the day, 27-year-old teacher Peter Turns died after he accidentally fell into the water while on a stag night.

He is thought to have been fleeing people who were chasing him.

Now Gavin's mum, Philomena Terry, of Baildon, has supported a campaign started by her son's heartbroken friends to step up safety at the spot before another tragedy happens.

Mrs Terry said: "How many more people have to die before something is done?"

One of Gavin's closest friends, Fabio Tozzi, of Clayton, Bradford, started the campaign to put in better barriers on the slope leading down to the river.

The 19-year-old was behind a forum on the Facebook website, which attracted about 35,000 members and hundreds of messages of support after Gavin went missing in January.

Mr Tozzi, a former St Bede's Catholic school pupil, said: "There are railings there but there is a metre-and-a-half gap between them which anyone could fit through.

"What has upset Philomena is that someone died there a year ago at the same point and nothing was done about it then.

"Gavin was seen on camera walking down there and he never walked back up. We want to make it safer by putting in more barriers to stop it happening again."

He went to the spot to lay flowers in memory of his friend, a former Bradford Salem rugby player and Bingley Harrier runner, a few days before Gavin's funeral on April 4.

Mrs Terry said: "The area is where the young people and adults go for a night out and for a drink and then, within 100 yards, there is this very dangerous area.

"It is not lit up and it is on a gradient down to the river, so your natural tendency is to go with the slope.

"Another young man died there in the same spot and another respectable family has lost their beloved one.

"It is just tragic and we do not know why something wasn't done then. How many deaths does it have to take?"

Gavin, a final year Leeds University student, was laid to rest in Bingley following a service for family and friends at St Cuthbert's Roman Catholic Church, in Wilmer Road, Heaton.

More than a hundred people were at the ceremony, including Mr Tozzi, who Mrs Terry thanked for his "amazing support".

Mr Tozzi has been in contact with Leeds City Council and British Waterways but it is unclear who owns the particular piece of land. When contacted by the Telegraph & Argus, a spokesman for Leeds City Council referred the matter to Aire Action, a partnership between the Council, British Waterways, Yorkshire Water and the Environment Agency.

Nobody was available for comment from the group.

A spokesman for British Waterways said that, although it is the authority responsible for the river, it does not own any land in The Calls.

She said: "British Waterways (BW) sympathises with the family and friends of Gavin Terry whose body was recently recovered from the River Aire.

"British Waterways is the navigation authority for the River Aire but does not have any land ownership in The Calls area of the City. As an organisation however, BW regards safety as the highest priority and invests considerable resources to minimise risks for both its employees and visitors."

e-mail: marc.meneaud@telegraphandargus.co.uk

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