ELEANOR Williams told a judge she is 'sorry' for the impact her claims of being raped and trafficked had on Barrow.

The 22-year-old passed a note to her barrister Louise Blackwell KC at her sentencing hearing apologising for the hurt she had caused - but did not accept she was guilty.

The internet was shocked by images shared by Williams of what appeared to be horrific injuries.

Photos of battered and bruised limbs, a black eye so bruised it was almost closed, burn marks and cuts and slashes accompanied the 1,360-word post made public on Williams' Facebook account shortly after 2pm on May 20 2020.

In the note, read in court, she explained the post and said she did not mean to cause upset in the town and was not racially motivated.

She said: "I’m not saying I’m guilty but I know I have done wrong on some of this and I’m sorry.

"When I wrote the Facebook post I never intended intended causing issues in the community, which is why I never mentioned any businesses.

“I’m devastated at the trouble that has been caused in Barrow.

"If I knew what trouble would be caused by that status I would never have written it."

Referring to the claims she had made about being raped and trafficked in Blackpool, she said she was 'young and confused'.

She said she had been discharged from hospital on the morning she took to Facebook to share claims of being trafficked that were shared more than 100,000 times.

"I was in a bad way and I wasn't thinking straight," she said.

"Anything that happened in the community was not instigated by me."

She said she did not condone Tommy Robinson, the English Defence League founder, coming to Barrow and does not agree with his views.

Ms Blackwell said Williams told her in the instructions that she and her family are not and 'never have been' racist.

The barrister said her client maintained the allegations were true.

She added: "Other than her personal vulnerabilities and her age there doesn't appear to be any motivation at all."

The court heard on Monday the Facebook post was shared by public figures with large social media followings, including Holly Hagan-Blyth of reality TV series Geordie Shore and Rachel Riley, the Countdown presenter.