The father of an 11-year-old boy who had sex with his 21-year-old babysitter has defended the woman in British court, claiming his son sees it as "a notch on his belt".

British babysitter Jade Hatt pleaded guilty to sexual activity with a child but managed to escape jail time, in a sentence that has seen the judge heavily criticised by children's groups.

The boy's father, whose name has been withheld, told the court his son was "fully up for the experience" and asked for the babysitter to be spared jail time.

The father had previously had a sexual relationship with the babysitter.

"He [the boy] is sex mad. He would have been fully up for this experience and in many ways sees it as a notch on his belt and is totally unaffected by it," he said in a statement to the court.



UNUSUAL SENTENCING

Judge Tim Mousely, QC, said that Hatt was immature for her age, while the boy was mature for his. Because of this, he stood out of the usual sentencing guidelines with sexual contact with a minor.

"Having read everything before me, it was quite clear he was a mature 11-year-old and you were an immature 20-year-old so that narrows the arithmetic age gap between you," he said.

The incident happened on a day the boy was off school. Jade Hatt, a friend of the boy's father, had babysat him before.

The court heard that she straddled the child, removed his clothes, and had sexual intercourse with him for around 45 seconds.

"She told him she enjoyed it, he said he had not as it was wrong," prosecutor Hannah Square told the court.

The father noticed love bites on his son's neck and texts from Hatt on his phone.

When Hatt was arrested, she admitted the sexual activity, but told police that the boy had claimed he was 15.

However, his father had told her his age several times.



IMMATURE

Defence lawyer Rob Ross told the court that Hatt was vulnerable and immature for her age.

She had a hard childhood, including two years in hospital with leukaemia between the ages of five and seven.

Hatt was charged and sentenced to a six-month jail term suspended for two years with supervision. She also must register as a sex offender for seven years.

Children's charity the NPSCC criticised the ruling heavily.

"It beggars belief that Tim Mousley QC could say that the 11-year-old victim's maturity and the abuser's immaturity 'narrowed the age gap' and was reason to step outside the sentencing guidelines; this sends a deeply worrying signal," a spokesman said in a statement.

"The victim's voice appears to have been ignored as, despite his own father claiming that his son was 'fully up for the experience', the boy himself said he had not enjoyed it and knew it was wrong. The effects of sexual abuse can be long lasting and it's essential that this boy is offered the necessary support."

Claude Knights of charity group Kidscape told The Guardian the language used in court implied the victim was too blame.

"This is a very disturbing case involving attempts to find mitigating circumstances," she said.

"It must be stressed however that we are dealing with an 11-year-old boy who, however physically mature he might appear, is a child in every sense. [...] He cannot be expected to have the emotional maturity to engage in a sexual relationship."