An unlicensed driver and cannabis smoker who took his mother's car without her permission and drove it into oncoming traffic, did so because he wanted to kill himself, a court heard.

Dylan Ward, 19, took his mum's Volkswagen to pick up a female friend and drive to Chatham. As he travelled along Dock Road towards the town centre he started to drive dangerously at high speeds.

As he neared The Brook he started driving on the wrong side of the road, again at speed, towards other traffic before crashing head-on into another vehicle, injuring a man in the process.

The crash happened just before midnight on March 26 and a man in the other vehicle, Mohammad Nakawi, suffered a fractured sternum as a result of the impact.

Ward, of Cambridge Road, Wigmore was later arrested and charged with five offences including causing serious injury by dangerous driving, aggravated vehicle taking, driving without a licence, driving without insurance and drug-driving.

He admitted all the offences when he appeared before magistrates in Medway on October 26 and the court heard when he was tested Ward had 2.8 microgrammes of cannabis per litre of blood, the legal limit is 2.

James Nichols prosecuting said: "It was a head on collision and he had cannabis in his system and it was a deliberate act as it was a suicide attempt."

However, the court heard Ward disputed he was trying to kill himself when he crashed the car.

Magistrates decided to send the case to Maidstone Crown Court to be dealt with and Ward will be sentenced there on a date to be fixed. He was granted bail until then.