A BABYSITTER who had sex with her 11-year-old charge has been spared jail after the lad's dad, who she had also had a fling with, said his son regarded it as a 'notch on his belt'.

Jade Hatt was meant to be minding the youngster during the day last November when she got the pair to strip and climbed astride him.

But after hearing the woman, now aged 21, was described as immature by the victim's dad, a judge said he could avoid sending her to jail.

Hannah Squire, prosecuting, told Swindon Crown Court: "The defendant was friends with the boy's father, with whom she had had a brief sexual relationship.

"He would ask her to babysit; she had babysat his 11-year-old son on six or seven occasions. On one of those occasions this offence took place.

"It was during the day and the boy was off school. The defendant arrived at about 11.30am.

"The boy was laying down, Jade Hatt sat on top of him, sat astride him, took off her clothes and removed his.

"In his words she started bouncing on his private parts. Sexual intercourse took place. According to him it was fairly brief: about 45 seconds. She told him she enjoyed it, he said he had not as it was wrong."

She said the lad's dad noticed he had a love bite on his neck and texts from Hatt were diverted to his phone, revealing what had taken place.

The police were called and when she was arrested she told officers the boy had told her he was 15, even though she knew his age as his father had told her.

Hatt, of Rolleston Street, pleaded guilty to sexual activity with a child.

Rob Ross, defending, said his client was a small, immature, woman and the victim was very advanced for his years.

Reading from a statement from the dad he told the court: "He said 'I know he told her he was 15. He looks older than his years.

"'He 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.' One has to say that is a father that knows his son well."

Mr Ross said petite Hatt 'clearly doesn't operate at the level of a 20-year-old' and was honest with the police about what had taken place.

Mr Ross said she was vulnerable and had a hard upbringing, spending two years in hospital with leukaemia between the ages of five and seven.

Passing sentence Judge Tim Mousley QC said it was an exceptional case allowing him to step outside the rigours of the sentencing guidelines.

He said: "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.

"I have read the comments of the boy's father to the police where he doesn't consider you a typical 20-year-old. I have also read what he has said about the effect on the victim."

He imposed a six month jail term suspended for two years with supervision and said she must register as a sex offender for seven years.

He also imposed a sexual harm prevention order banning her from having unsupervised contact with young boys for two years.