A mother told how a family celebration ended in bloodshed after gatecrashers stormed their party hurling bottles, glasses and stones.

Angie Kesteven had saved for months to throw an 18th birthday party for her son Martin.

As the celebration was drawing to a close, a gang of 20 youths burst into the church hall and began attacking party-goers.

During the fracas, Mrs Kesteven, 40, was hit by a bottle which smashed in her eye. She lost 40 per cent of the vision in the eye.

Police have appealed for help in tracking down the gang of youths. The incident happened at St Helen's Church hall, Hangleton Way, Hove, on Saturday night.

Mrs Kesteven, of Warrior Close, Portslade said: "It had been a lovely family function, with aunties and uncles and friends Martin has had since he was at nursery school.

"Everyone had tickets and my brother Stuart, was on the door all night. We even had teddy hand-stamps for people who wanted to go in and out. But ten minutes from the end, when we were clearing up, this gang burst in.

"They were young teenagers. I would say the oldest were 15 or 16. They started throwing things with real viciousness and smashed a window. I don't know what they wanted. Some of them seemed drunk to me. I was standing at the bottom of some stairs when a bottle came flying down and knocked me out cold."

Mrs Kesteven was treated at the Royal Sussex County Hospital.

She said: "I'm not a pretty sight. My face is badly bruised and swollen.

"There is still bleeding and swelling behind my eye and they don't know yet if I will get all my sight back."

Mrs Kesteven said she had no idea who the gang were or why they attacked her family.

She said: "I can't understand why these children did this. What were they doing wandering the streets at 11pm on a Saturday night? It was a malicious attack and it is just so sad."

Mrs Kesteven said she had saved long and hard to be able to give her son the party and friends and neighbours had chipped in to help.

She said her boyfriend Philip Strotten was prepared to put up a reward to trace the gang and find out who threw the bottle.

Anyone with any information should call Sussex Police on 0845 6070999.