A mother has issued a warning after her daughter was chased along the street by a man demanding sex.

The 15-year-old schoolgirl had just left her friends and was walking home along Brierton Lane, Hartlepool, on Sunday night when the man began following her.

As she walked passed the Pink Domino pub on Catcote Road just before 10pm, a man in a grey hooded top came from the rear car park and shouted at her.

The terrified girl began to sprint in the direction of her home, with the man following close behind.

He told the girl that she may as well stop because he was going to have sex with her, anyway.

The girl's shaken 36-year-old mother, who lives in the Owton Manor area of town, said other parents and young girls should be careful.

She said: "He was running after her and he shouted 'you might as well stop because I'm going to get hold of you and have sex with you, anyway'.

"She was terrified. She ran for three or four minutes up Brierton Lane and then she turned off to come home and he was running after her. "When she got home, she could not speak. She could not catch her breath."

Fortunately, the man did not manage to catch the girl and police were called minutes after she arrived home safely.

The mother said she had not worried about her daughter making her way home at that time because it was not then dark and she was fairly close by.

But she added: "I will now take her to where she wants to go and then pick her up later.

"This has shaken me up and I think all parents should be more protective about their children. They are obviously not safe."

Police are investigating the incident and have appealed for anyone with information to come forward.

The man was described as about 5ft 6ins tall, white-skinned, and aged about 30. He spoke with a local accent and was wearing grey tracksuit bottoms and a grey hooded top.

Anyone with information should call police on (01642) 302126.