The mother of a 16-year-old boy who was stabbed in the chest says she is disgusted at the sentence handed down to his attacker.

Billy Baxter, from Blackburn, was walking along Bank Top in Blackburn, close to the Tesco Express, at around 6.45pm on Friday September 17.

He was approached by another teen, punched, and then stabbed in the chest.

Officers attended the scene and found the 16-year-old had already been taken to Royal Blackburn Hospital by a passer-by and was later transferred to a hospital in Manchester for surgery on his heart.

A 17-year-old boy, who cannot be named for legal reasons, was sentenced on Wednesday to 27 months in a youth offenders institute.

Billy’s mother, Jessie Brian, was angered and upset at the 'leniency' of the sentence.

She released a shocking picture of Billy in his hospital bed to the Lancashire Telegraph at the time of the attack and has now provided one of the boy's scars after his operation.

She said: “I am really disappointed at the sentence.

Lancashire Telegraph: Billy Baxter was stabbed in the chest in Blackburn

“Billy has ADHD, autism and social anxiety, and not one word was mentioned about how vulnerable he is in court.

“It was the second time he’d been out in almost two years and he was stabbed.

“I think there should have been a stronger punishment because the attacker will do half of that before he’s let out.

Blackburn teen left needing heart surgery after being stabbed in chest

“And he was given credit for pleading guilty, and only pleaded guilty because there was CCTV and he couldn’t deny it any longer.

“There’s so much publicity around knife crime now as well, and they should be making an example of him.

“Instead my son has to wake up every day with a scar from the top of his chest to the bottom.

“He has nightmares and can no longer do what others can do.

“He had just turned a corner and agreed to go to college, but now he’s too scared to go.

Lancashire Telegraph:

“The solicitors were going on about about how this lad is doing really well in custody, and how he’s had access to all these courses - but does my son get that? No.

“It’s awful.

“All we’ve had is a phone call from NEST (young victim support service) and a visit from CID every now and then. It’s a disgrace.”

Ms Brian said she had even thought about leaving Blackburn so Billy can have a fresh start, as the whole incident has had a profound effect on him.

She said: “People get more for robbery or drug dealing, but knife crime is a lot worse.

“Billy doesn’t really speak to us anymore, and just sits staring out of the windows, you can see that he’s worried.

“I just really think he should have been given a longer sentence.”

The 17-year-old defendant was originally charged with attempted murder but following consultation with the Crown Prosecution Service, the charge was reduced to one of section 18 wounding with intent.

He was handed 27 months in custody, and four months for possessing a bladed article in public, to run concurrently with the section 18 charge.

A 16-year-old girl from Darwen was also arrested on suspicion of wounding at the time but was released without charge.