Funeral for trek death schoolboy

Hayden was on a trip to Austria with other pupils from the Howard School

About 450 mourners gathered for the funeral of a 12-year-old Kent boy who fell to his death while out trekking with friends on a school skiing trip.

Hayden Waller, of Wigmore, fell 30ft (9m) on to rocks near the group's hotel in the Austrian resort of Mallnitz in the accident on 18 February.

He was among 38 boys from the Howard School, Rainham, on the half-term trip.

Many at the funeral at St Margaret's Church, Rainham, wore pink in memory of an "adventurous boy loved by everyone".

The service, which was followed by a private burial, was relayed via a sound feed to people gathered outside.

Canon Alan Vousden, vicar of Rainham, who led the service, said Hayden had died attempting to save one of his friends who had fallen.

He paid tribute to Hayden on behalf of his parents Hayley and Gary, describing him as "a real person of character and charisma".

The coffin, carried by his father, was followed by his mother and brother

"He could relate to a group of people across the generation gap, he was good with young children and he could hold his own among a group of adults. He was becoming a proper teenager," he said.

Mr Vousden also referred to Hayden's keen sense of fun and adventurous streak, and described him as "a budding entrepreneur".

During the service, three of Hayden's friends also remembered the boy who was always "full of smiles and happiness".

And tributes from his aunts, Nicola Little and Nic Waller, described how Hayden loved pink, and had told his friends the colour was "the new black, and only real men can wear pink".

'Tragic accident'

Hayden broke his neck in the fall, which happened while he was out walking with three friends.

The party of 12 to 18-year-olds and seven teachers cut the trip short after Hayden's death.

The school has been going to the southern province of Carinthia in Austria for the past 20 years.

Hayden's parents have said they do not want anyone to be blamed for what was a "tragic accident".

And a spokesman for Medway Council has said it might be some time before it would be possible to establish how the accident happened.