The mother of a young boy who was hit 11 times with a car jack by another three-year-old boy in Birkenhead has won the right to compensation.

Jay Jones, - who is now five - needed stitches to his head after he was attacked while the boys were alone in a car two years ago.

His mother Renai Williams said the Tribunals Service ruled in her favour despite the Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority (CICA) twice refusing to pay out as it disputed whether such a young child could be guilty of a crime of violence.

Recalling the terrifying incident, mother-of-three Ms Williams said: “I thought Jay was dead when I saw him first. There was blood everywhere and he was limp and lifeless, it was a sight no mother should ever have to see.

“We got a phone call saying Jay had been hurt and asking us to come round, initially we thought it was nothing more than the usual bump and scrapes kids get involved in.

“But as we turned the corner we noticed the family’s car windscreen was cracked and immediately knew something terrible had happened.

“We ran in to the house and saw Jay lying there barely conscious and covered in blood. We asked what had happened and they simply pointed to a car jack covered in blood, I felt sick.”

Within hours, the doctors at Arrowe Park Hospital, Merseyside, were confident that Jay would survive but it was much longer before they could confirm he would suffer no lasting brain damage.

The brave toddler was fit to leave hospital 48 hours later but the swelling on his face took a month to subside.

He suffered nightmares and bed wetting for months afterwards and was terrified to go anywhere on his own, or near windows because it reminded him of being in the car.

Ms Williams added: "This has been a long and hard-fought process. We have been knocked back twice by the CICA because in my opinion they didn't take my son's case seriously.

Michelle Armstrong, of Kirwans Solicitors which represented the family, added: "The CICA rejected the case twice, questioning whether the actions of a three-year-old perpetrator could constitute a 'crime of violence'.

"We argued that the age of the perpetrator was irrelevant when claiming compensation from the CICA. And it was on this point that we won."

Simon Gibson, a partner at Kirwans, said: "Certainly, Jay's case could potentially open the door for thousands more claims for damages to the CICA.

"In order for anyone to qualify for compensation the injury has to be of a serious nature, but should a child attack another in the playground, and the assault is deemed deliberate and not accidental, then they would be entitled to claim."

The amount of compensation to be paid in the wake of the attack, which took place in December 2007, is yet to be decided.

A CICA spokesman told the BBC it did not comment on individual cases, but said it made "payments to victims of violent crime as a gesture of public sympathy".