THE mother of an eight-year-old boy who was raped in the family home says her traumatised son has received no help in the wake of his ordeal at the hands of his 12-year-old attacker. The mother, who cannot be named to protect her son's identity, said she was even denied the chance to see the rapist sentenced - the first she knew of his court appearance was when she read last week's Free Press. She accused the police and social services of doing all they could to shield the 12-year-old Minehead attacker - whose identity is protected by law - and claimed she had even been made to feel guilty for pressing charges. She told the Free Press: "I have decided to speak out as I want to make sure that this never happens to another family. "If my son had been a girl, I'm convinced all the help would have been there. But he's had nothing - no counselling, no support, nothing. "I wasn't even told the monster who attacked him was going to court. "I just don't understand why we're the ones who are being punished for this." But Detective Superintendent Trevor Simpson, head of Avon and Somerset Constabulary's Public Protection Unit, said that while he accepted the family had not been told of the court appearance, they had been told how to obtain counselling. He said the conduct of the investigation had been reviewed in light of the mother's concerns and he was satisfied the officer in charge of the case had "maintained good contact" with the victim's family throughout the course of the investigation. Mr Simpson said that included advising the family how to obtain counselling services and to contact their GP for help. But he added: "Unfortunately, due to an administrative error, the victim's family was not informed of the final court date. "This is clearly regrettable as we appreciate how important this stage of the judicial process is to the victims of crime. "We apologise for this error and will look to improve our procedures accordingly. "We intend to meet with the family to offer this apology in person and explain exactly what went wrong. "Clearly we would like to use this opportunity to assist the family in any other way possible." The family's nightmare began in May this year when the 12-year-old attacked the youngster at the family home. The family knew something was wrong when the boy completely withdrew from everyday life but it took a full two days of gentle coaxing before he spoke of his ordeal. "He went all funny for a couple of days but eventually he told us. He's OK physically but mentally he's completely traumatised, he's very angry and has started sleepwalking. "I'm so frightened he's going to walk out of the house one night," the mother said. She said the family was simply coping on a day-to- day basis and was struggling to come to terms with the events of the last few months. "We've been looking for help but we seem to be banging our heads against a wall. "My son's had no counselling and the police didn't even want me to press charges in the first place. "They told me they were worried about the effect it would have on the attacker and told me the attacker's father had wanted to come and see me to beg for forgiveness. "Why are they trying to make me feel guilty? Too many people are getting away with things in this country and we're just being swept under the carpet." The 12-year-old rapist was placed on the Sex Offenders Register for two and a half years and given a ten-month referral order when he appeared before West Somerset Magistrates' Court, in Minehead, at the end of last month. He admitted raping the eight-year-old on May 13 and sexually touching him. Three allegations of assault by beating were withdrawn. However, the Free Press' court reporter was unable to cover the case in detail as, unbeknown to reporters and even some court staff, magistrates arrived early and sentenced the attacker half an hour before the court was scheduled to start. The mother said she believed the case had been "rushed through" the court system to protect her son's attacker and added: "They knew I wanted to sit in court and see him brought to justice. "I just wanted to be able to sit there and look him and his parents in the eye to give them just a hint of what we've been through but I was denied even that. "I knew he was being prosecuted but no-one told me he was going to court. "All I've had is a letter to tell me he's appeared in court and that was it." A police spokesman said the charity Victim Support would not have been able to provide 'suitable support' for the woman's young son. Instead, that responsibility would have fallen to social services who, in turn, would call in suitably trained counsellors. A spokesman from Somerset County Council said social services staff had declined to comment on the case as the mother's concerns were being addressed by the police.