A Bolton man with a "heart of gold" was struck by a car after he stumbled into the road unseen by the driver, an inquest has heard.

Nathan Hayes died of his injuries after the incident on Worsley Road North at around 10pm on July 20 last year.

Mr Hayes, 32, was at a bus stop on the way to his home close to the town centre from Salford Royal, where he had been taken and he had been treated after he was unconscious outside a shop in Cheetham Hill, North Manchester, earlier in the day.

He was discharged from the hospital at his request before he was diagnosed but it is thought his condition was related to the consumption of drink and drugs due to the presence of these in his system at the time of the post-mortem.

At Bolton Coroners' Court, the senior coroner, Timothy Brennand, listened to a number of witnesses including the NHS workers involved in his care, the police workers involved in the investigation and the driver of the Dacia Sandero, Leon Woodham.

Mr Woodham, who was an Aldi worker on the way to his home after a shift at the supermarket, was charged with the failure to stop after he failed to remain at the scene, but he was not charged in connection with causing the death.

He said: "The first I knew of the impact was when Mr Hayes was underneath my car. There had been a lot of roadworks so I thought I had hit an item lying around.

"I looked into my mirror to check if I could see what I went over but I couldn't see anything."

The Bolton News: Worsley Road North

The senior coroner said he could not be sure of the reason Mr Hayes stumbled into the road and he could not be sure of the reason he was unseen by Mr Woodham.

Returning a road traffic collision conclusion, Mr Brennand said the consumption of drink and drugs made a collapse likely but he excluded it from causing the death.

He said: "Following his collapse into the carriageway the deceased remained motionless for a few seconds but upon showing signs of movement suggestive of him getting up from the road he was struck by a Dacia Sandero travelling at least 34mph [in a 30mph zone]. 

"For reasons which could not be established the driver of the vehicle did not appreciate the presence of the deceased in the carriageway and therefore he did not brake or otherwise attempt to steer aside or any other way to avoid the impact. The driver of the vehicle appreciated he struck an object but he assumed it to be some debris and so he did not stop at the scene."

Janet Sharples, the mother of Mr Hayes, said as a child at Cherry Tree Primary School and Harper Green Secondary School he was "a typical little lad" who loved Manchester United.

He loved music as well and in later life he was a rapper who went by the name of Shadow MC.

Ms Sharples said: "Nathan was a big character and he had a heart of gold. I tried to see him every day and we would spend time together as a mother and a son. 

"He is missed by the entirety of his family."

This article was written by Jack Tooth. To contact him, email jack.tooth@newsquest.co.uk or follow @JTRTooth on Twitter.