A British schoolboy (12) who raped his sister (7) after he watched hardcore pornography has walked free from court. Social workers will now work with him to return him to the family home in the coming months.

Blackburn Youth Court heard the boy had viewed pornography in the company of his friends.

He had apparently seen porn on an X-box games console at a friend's house and this had led to a "sexual conversation" with his friends.

The youngster then gained a "desire to try it out" and he committed a number of sexual offences against his sister.

He committed a number of sexual offences against her between March and May last year, but the matters did not come to light until the autumn.

The boy pleaded guilty to one count of rape, two counts of indecent assault and one count of inciting a child to engage in a sex act.

In a statement, the now 13-year-old said he was "disgusted" with his actions and promised it would not happen again.

While sentencing him Judge James Prowse said detaining him would "tear the family apart" and expose him to hardened youth offenders.

In a victim impact statement, the girl said she was "sad" at what her brother had done but she wanted him to come home because she loved him and missed playing games with him.

The judge imposed a 12-month referral order as he followed the recommendations of a Youth Offending Team. The youngster would also be placed on the sex offenders register for two-and-a-half years.

Under a referral order, the child is ordered to appear before a Referral Order Panel accompanied by a parent. And it aims to prevent re-offending by ensuring the person is made aware of the impact and consequences of his criminal activity.

Judge Prowse said the order would be "intense" and was specifically tailored to deal with last year's events.

He said it would be "a tough haul" for his parents, who were also confronting the abuse of their daughter, but he said he felt they were "going to get there".