A former member of London's underworld will be making his way to the borough this Friday to talk to pupils at a Croydon school.

Having switched from terror to teaching, John Pridmore will speak to John Fisher School pupils about the dangers of gang culture, sex and drugs as part of a five-day tour of schools in south-east London.

A former hardman and drug dealer in the East End, the 40-year-old served two prison sentences in his teens and reportedly carried a machete and a gun with him when he went about his former business.

But when he visits the school in Peaks Hill, Purley, it will not be weapons that he will be carrying, but words of advice.

The reformed heavy says he had a road to Damascus conversion' in 1991 after almost killing a man outside a central London pub.

Since then John has spoken to more than 250,000 young people in Britain, Ireland, America, Germany and Austria.

He has also written a book about his life From Gangland to Promised Land and spoken about gang culture on radio and television in a bid to discourage youngsters from a life of crime.

John explained: "Many kids today are getting sucked into the gang culture and drugs.

"They think it sounds glamorous and cool but it's a violent and dangerous world that only leads to prison or a box six feet under."

He added: "I've found that kids will listen to me because of the experiences I've been through."

Gang culture in the borough is also being addressed by another pioneering project run by Croydon Supplementary Education Project (CSEP).

Called Digital Grafitti, and targeting young black and ethnic minority people, the free internet sessions focus on creating a website in which users can discuss topics such as peer pressure and citizenship.

Project organiser Nicola Cook said: "Part of the CSEP's mission statement is to foster the development of our young people as independent learners and responsible citizens.

"This particular project is aimed at letting students express their views and debate topics relevant to their lives with their peers, based around finding ways to reduce weapon crime and gang culture."

If you are interested in joining the six-week course call Nicola on 020 8686 7865 or email info@csep.org.uk.