A THREE TOWNS mother whose daughter lives in fear of bumping into a man convicted of sexually abusing her is to campaign for a change in the law to prevent sex offenders being allowed to live close to their victims.

The woman, who cannot be named for legal reasons, says her 12-year-old daughter went from being a ‘bubbly, happy-go-lucky girl’ to ‘not wanting to live’ following her ordeal.

Last year, the youngster was pestered for six months by a pervert who would approach her in the street and ask her to give him her tights.

He was eventually convicted of harassing her and two other under-age girls and given 200 hours community service and placed on the Sex Offenders’ Register.

But to the mum’s horror, he continues to live just one street away and now the youngster cowers in her bedroom instead of playing in the street – constantly worried she will encounter the depraved sex pest.

Through tears, the woman told the Herald: “My daughter went from being a happy-go-lucky outgoing young girl to being someone who comes in from school, goes for a bath, puts her jammies on and sits in the house.

“She gets angry and starts hitting herself and telling me she wants to die.

“It’s so hard to watch.

“During the six months the abuse was happening I saw a change in her. I knew something wasn’t right and I would ask her about it every single night.

“I was convinced there was something seriously wrong with her.

“She was chalk white and wasn’t eating. She wouldn’t go outside, she was so lethargic and just had no oomph.

“From being a bubbly girl that would sing, dance, was very flamboyant and showy, she turned into a wee thing that just sits there."

Eventually the girl told her mother about the sex pest and they went to the police.

However, with the man receiving a non-custodial sentence he returned to the street just a few yards from his victim.

On one occasion, the girl allegedly had to hide in a neighbour’s garden when she spotted her abuser walking towards her.

She has even stopped playing in her garden as she can hear the man’s voice over the fence.

The story is especially painful for the mum as she herself was a victim of childhood sex abuse at the hands of her father.

She endured his perverted behaviour between the ages of four and eleven and it wasn’t until years later she discovered she and other family members had been holding on to a terrible family secret.

At a family gathering, her aunt – the abuser’s sister – confessed to also being a victim and the floodgates were opened leading to him being caged for eleven years for multiple historical sex offences.

“We are survivors. There are quite a few generations of us that didn’t know each of us was getting abused by my father, their brother, their uncle, their brother-in-law.

“They didn’t know. It was a dirty secret.”

Now the family want to launch a campaign to change the law to protect the girl from reliving her horrific experience by encountering her abuser, and have contacted local politicians to try to win their support.

As the law currently stands, an offender will only be placed in supervised accommodation if they represent a ‘high or very high risk of serious harm to the public’.

The mum said: “I don’t want my daughter taking into adulthood the negativity that we have carried.

“The memories don’t go away. But you get stronger but it’s the thought of protecting other that spurs you on.

“We’ve got help in line for her, but until he is out of the picture we can’t get that help. Every time she sees him he is a stumbling block.

“My concern is the next child. I’m not saying my daughter got off lightly but it could have been a hell of a lot worse.

“We are not vigilantes. We don’t want people crashing through his door. But we want a change in the law to prevent perverts from moving back to where their victims are still living.

“We’re going to set up a Scottish Parliament petition and promote it through Twitter and Facebook.

“We’ll stand in the street and we’ll scream and shout until it’s changed.”

Both the Scottish Government and North Ayrshire Council say they are unable to comment on specific cases but both stress the safety of the community is their priority.

A Scottish Government spokesperson said: “While we cannot comment on individual cases, the prime consideration when assessing the suitability of accommodation of offenders is the safety of the community.

“The monitoring of sex offenders in Scotland is more stringent than ever before and law enforcement agencies have tough powers available to manage these individuals upon release.

“Registered sex offenders, like other offenders, need to be re-integrated into the community on release from prison.

“In common with other offenders, registered sex offenders will generally return to their own communities, unless there are exceptional circumstances which mean this will increase risk.

“The responsible authorities must ensure they have thoroughly considered the potential risks any victim may be exposed to, and put in robust plans to minimise the likelihood of the offender causing serious harm.”

A spokesperson for North Ayrshire Council said: “In line with all other local

authorities in Scotland, North Ayrshire Council must follow the MAPPA (Multi Agency Public Protection Arrangements) process in all cases where we have a legal duty to provide accommodation for a registered sex offender.

“This is the process used by Police Scotland, the Prison Service, Criminal Justice Social Work and other agencies to manage any risks posed by offenders living in the community.

“Central to this process is the need to protect the public and to consider the protection of previous and possible future victims.

“We are unable to comment on individual cases.”