Sexual assault of a child aged under 13.

The mother of a victim of sexual abuse at the hands of a Grimsby man has spoken out about the devastating impact it had on her daughter.

The woman described how after being abused by Jamie Smith, her daughter was so traumatized that she self-harmed and changed her appearance out of fear of attracting men.

She said that her daughter's teenage years were robbed as a result.

Smith, 35, formerly of Grimsby but now living in Whitehead in Northern Ireland, was sentenced to 10 months in prison, suspended for two years, after admitting to sexual assault of a child under 13. Smith was also placed on the sex offenders register for 10 years after pleading guilty to the charge at Grimsby Crown Court, several years after the original crimes.

With the case finally concluded, the victim's mother told GrimsbyLive that she feels as though a weight has been lifted from their shoulders.

"When I found out what had happened, I wanted to hurt him for what she told me he'd done. I was so frustrated, and if it wasn't for her telling me to not do anything, I don't know what I would've done," she said. "I saw a number of screenshots and messages that suggested something wasn't right, and although I believed she was telling the truth from the start, this confirmed it to me. It was at that point that I flipped, but I knew I had to be there for her, so I put my own thoughts and feelings to one side while I made sure she was okay."

She added, "All her friends and family have supported her through this, but it's not been easy."

After the assault, the victim began self-harming and trying to change her appearance. When her mother asked her why she had changed her appearance and started "dressing differently," the victim told her it was so people would stop "trying it on with me" and to "stop it from happening again."

"It was so difficult to hear her say those things, but you have to put your feelings aside and help them in any way you can," she said. "As much as I have been there for my daughter, the incident has meant her life hasn't been what it should have. This whole ordeal stole her teenage years from her, and she's only just coming out the other side."

With Smith admitting his crime, the mother feels like it's made things a little bit easier.

"It's a relief to know that he admitted what he did. I just hope nobody else gets tricked by him in the future. "It has come as closure for myself and my daughter. We're trying to put this behind us and just get on with our lives now. Thankfully, she's got her life back, but you never think something like this would ever happen to your family," she said.

"I've felt down myself throughout all of this, but what she's had to go through is just awful. She told me after everything, 'he's not broken me, he's the broken one.'"