A woman has been awarded £6.5m compensation by the High Court for injuries caused by a hit and run driver.

Nikki Buckley was still a teenager when she was hit by a car which mounted the pavement near her home in the West Midlands in 2002. Miss Buckley, who is now 22, sustained spinal injuries which have left her paralysed. She now has only minimal use of her hands and needs round the clock care.

Some of her compensation pay-out will be used to provide specialised equipment and accommodation.

The driver was later jailed for two years in 2002 for driving under the influence of alcohol and for failing to stop at the scene of an accident.