A Sussex teenager who fought off would-be abductor has been recognised for her courage with a national award.

Katrina Back was named Britain's biggest hero in the national contest, run by magazine That's Life.

Earlier this year, the 13-year-old, of New England Street, Brighton, was also named Achiever of the Year at The Argus Achievement Awards.

Katrina was nine when a man tried to snatch her as she played with friends behind her home.

She tried to escape but he hung on to her and dragged her down the street. She was so scared she could not even scream.

But Katrina had an inner strength that helped her to struggle free and she managed to escape.

After that ordeal, she went through the torment of seeing him again and again in the shops and streets around her home.

Her mum, Cathy, reported each sighting to the police but each time the attacker, Jeremy Turnbull, slipped away.

When he was finally caught, Katrina had to pick him out in an identity parade and testify against him at Lewes Crown Court.

Turnbull, 44, was found guilty of attempted abduction and, following psychiatric assessment, admitted to a secure unit.

Two years later, Katrina felt it was time to use her experience to help other children. Cathy contacted us so Katrina could tell her story but reporting restrictions prevented us from writing about what happened to her.

Determined, Katrina wrote to Judge Richard Brown explaining why it was so important for her to tell her story.

The judge agreed to lift restrictions and Katrina became an informal spokesperson for survivors of abduction.

After the attack, Katrina became withdrawn, shy and anxious. She suffered nightmares and was terrified she would see Turnbull again.

She said: "This summer has been quite hard because I keep thinking about what happened to Holly Wells and Jessica Chapman and it has made me realise how close I came to something like that happening to me.

"When I talk about it, it makes me feel better, because I know I am helping other people.

"That was why I wanted to tell my story in The Argus to start off with - so I could do something about it and so other children would know it was fine to tell their mums and dads if something like that happened to them.

"I feel happy about winning the award but I didn't expect any of this to happen and that's not why I did it. I did it because I want to change things. What matters is stopping the same thing from happening to other kids."

Cathy says her daughter has become more confident since the story first appeared in The Argus.

She said: "When a paedophile sees someone like Katrina in the paper or on TV, it is taking their power away from them. They don't have the power anymore - she does. Paedophiles feed on power and she is taking that away from them.

"Katrina has a message to spread about never getting in a stranger's car and always looking for strangers talking to kids.

"I am very, very proud of her."