Warning: This story contains details some may find distressing
Three boys were involved in the attack – two boys, then aged 14, were convicted of rape. A third, then 13, was guilty of rape by aiding and abetting the attack.
The Sentencing Council for England and Wales says that even in very serious cases, courts are expected to prioritise rehabilitation for children and use custody only as a last resort.
Both parents spoke anonymously to BBC Newsnight presenter Victoria Derbyshire along with their daughter.
The teenage girl said her mental health has suffered significantly following the attack and she struggles to get out of bed.
“I feel like no matter what I do, I can always feel their hands [the rapists’] on me, no matter how much I’ve scrubbed, how much I’ve tried to get the feeling away, it’s always there and it just doesn’t feel like my body anymore,” she said.
She said she suffers from “vivid flashbacks”, adding: “I don’t sleep at night, because I’m worried something’s going to happen.”
Going to school has also been challenging, she said: “I have very low attendance and with my exams going on it’s not helping because I’m so far behind in my education. I’m just losing out on the potential I would have had if none of this had happened.”
Her mother said she wanted her daughter not to “live in fear” but to “be able to be free and happy again”.
Her father said the rape “will cause a lifelong impact on my daughter and my family. This isn’t going away for five years, 10 years. This is a life sentence for her”.
He added: “I understand that we may not be able to lock these boys up for a life sentence but it starts with a custodial sentence and I feel they have to have something in there, going forwards, that impacts them for life.”
The girl met the boys in January 2025 at Fordingbridge Recreation Ground, where she was raped repeatedly.
One of her attackers pushed her down and used a knife to cut her clothing before forcing himself on her.
Video footage previously seen in court showed her lying motionless on the ground with “her face buried in her hands”, while another boy was heard shouting words of encouragement.