THE mother of a bullied teen-ager has spoken of her daughter's torment since the ordeal.

Marie Booth and Hayley Short, both 16 and from Darlington, were locked up on Friday for two-and-a-half years after a vicious attack on the 15-year-old, who cannot be named for legal reasons.

The beating left her with a fractured cheekbone and a cracked skull.

But her mother said it was the mental scars that would take longest to heal.

She revealed that her daughter had only recently returned to school after being away since the attack last May and that her daughter continued to suffer.

"She's had to go to counselling, she's on medication, sleeping pills and anti-depressants - and she's only 15," said the mother.

"She's never gone down the town, never been on a bus or gone to the shops.

"And she hasn't been sleeping since it happened because she's been having nightmares that she's in a coffin and things like that - it's affected all of us really."

Teesside Crown Court heard how Booth punched and kicked the victim during a row over a boyfriend.

After Short joined in, by stamping on the younger girl's head, Booth told the sobbing 15-year-old: "Stop crying or I will put you 6ft under."

The victim's mother, who was alerted to the beating on her mobile phone and ran to the scene, described how the girl's schoolwork has also suffered and with vital exams looming next summer she has even had to drop some GCSE subjects.

The family is now hoping to put the ordeal behind them and get on with their lives.

The mother said: "My daughter was in a really bad state. We thought she wasn't going to pull through, that's how bad it was.

"We'd like to put it all behind us now, but then we've got to face them when they come out - but I don't want to think about that right now.

"My daughter doesn't trust anyone. That's all gone, but hopefully with the help of the counsellor she'll get over it."

The woman praised detectives for their part in the case, Judge Peter Fox for taking the rare step of allowing the two 16-year-old girls to be named, and The Northern Echo for bringing the case to light.

She said: "I wasn't expecting them to get two and-a-half years, but I'm glad because bullying like this has got to stop.

"I want to thank my daughter's friends for phoning me because if I hadn't got there she would have been dead."