Why did I put myself through the pain of going to court, says rape victim

A girl who was raped by two teenage boys, who were spared jail, has told the BBC of her dismay at the sentences they received.

The teenager, who was 15 when she was attacked, spoke anonymously alongside her family.

She said the judge’s decision “almost made it seem as if what the boys did was not OK, but it was OK in the eyes of the law because they were still children”.

The attorney general is to review the sentence given by Judge Nicholas Rowland, who had said on Thursday he wanted to avoid “criminalising” the “very young” boys.

The girl told the BBC’s Laura Kuenssberg: “Why did I put myself through the pain of going to court, going through a trial, reliving everything…It sort of gave me the sense of what’s the point?”