A gardener died after jumping off a moving lawnmower.

Gary Bartoszek received serious head injuries in the accident, which happened as he was driving across a car park at the University of Sussex.

He never regained consciousness and died after seven days on a life support machine.

Mr Bartoszek, 35, was taking the ride-on lawn mower to get fuel at the Falmer campus on June 24. He died on Monday.

A witness saw him jump off and hit his head on the car park's Tarmac surface.

He was treated at the scene by university first-aiders and paramedics before being taken to the Royal Sussex County Hospital, Brighton.

Mr Bartoszek, of Brading Road in Brighton, had worked as a groundsman at the university for 13 years and was employed by contractor Ecovert at the time of his death.

Brighton and Hove coroner's office said no date had been fixed for an inquest. The incident is being treated as an industrial accident and a jury will be called for the hearing.

Maintenance contract manager Paul Kelly said it was not clear why Mr Bartoszek jumped from the machine, which carried on and came to a stop when it hit a tree.

He said: "We are devastated by this tragic loss. Gary was a quiet, unassuming and likeable man who loved rock music.

"He will be sadly missed by all the grounds staff and by everyone who knew him at the university."

Nigel Skinner, head of grounds at Ecovert, said: "We are saddened by Gary's tragic death and we send our condolences to his family and friends."

The incident has been reported to the Health and Safety Executive.