A mum has told of her shock after finding a drug needle whilst dropping her daughter off at school.

The mother had been walking along the footpath through Weymouth Cemetery on when she saw the item.

She said: “It was just there in the middle of the path. It was the first thing in the morning, so there were a lot of dog walkers and young people around. Families walk through there to drop their kids off at school.”

She said the needle made her feely ‘uneasy’ and her daughter had a lot of questions about what it was doing there.

She added: “I now have to explain to my young daughter not to touch needles. It’s not going to be pleasant explaining to her why it was there. You try to shield kids from things like this. I wouldn’t someone to touch it by accident.”

She moved the needle up against a nearby wall and contacted Dorset Waste Partnership.

She said: “It would be nice not to see things like that. I’m not naïve and think that it doesn’t happen daily, but it’s nice to think you can contact someone who comes and removes it on the same day.”

Dorset Waste Partnership was originally unsuccessful in finding the needle but later removed it.

A spokesman for DWP said: “Our crew went out to have a look for, but couldn’t locate the needle.

“Our depot supervisor is now contacting the person who originally reported it to get further details. Once located, we’ll dispatch a crew to clear it up immediately.”

It was later confirmed the needle had been removed by an officer using specialist equipment.

Local town councillor Trefor Morgan said: “It’s quite difficult for the town council to make a lot of impact on this sort of thing. It’s got to be a multi-agency response to it.”

He suggested more areas, where users can exchange used needles for clean ones and equipment can be disposed of safely, could be key to tackling the issue.

He said: “There’s at least one facility in Weymouth. I think that’s a good response moving forward.

“There’s no simple solution, tackling drugs is a difficult thing. But rather than dumping the needles, users are able to dispose of them properly and are given a clean one.”

Cllr Morgan encourages anyone who finds such items to contact Dorset Waste Partnership, or Dorset Police on 101.