A BURNLEY youngster died after he was hit by a taxi while enjoying an afternoon on his bike, an inquest heard.

William Haigh, nine, died when his bike collided with a Toyota Avensis in Belvedere Road at 5pm on Sunday, July 3.

The inquest heard William, of Leyland Road, rode his bike out of Ridge Road on to Belvedere Road, where he was struck by the taxi driven by Sharjan Khan. He was not wearing a helmet.

Mr Khan told the hearing he was driving guests home from a wedding at Turf Moor when the smash happened.

He said: "I was driving along the main road when all of a sudden a lad pulled out on a bicycle from between the parked cars."

An accident investigation showed the car was driving within the 30mph speed limit and had no defects.

Officers called to the scene found the youngster unconscious and tried to resuscitate him before he was taken by ambulance to Burnley General Hospital, where he died.

A post mortem examination gave his cause of death as head injuries.

East Lancashire Coroner Richard Taylor recorded a verdict of accidental death and said: "No doubt William was caught up in a world of his own and lost in enjoyment but his life was tragically ended by this accident."

William, a pupil of St Peter's school, is survived by mum Adele, dad, David, 47, stepdad Ian, 29 and brothers Ben, 12, and Christopher, 19.

His funeral was held in Huddersfield.