THE mother of a schoolgirl killed in a road smash last night said she had forgiven the woman who caused the accident.

Charlotte Hill, 13, died when Magdalena Ochnio’s Toyota Avensis ploughed into the back of a Ford Ka on the A34 slip road in Kidlington in November last year.

Ochnio was cleared of causing death by dangerous driving at Oxford Crown Court last week, but admitted a charge of death by careless driving.

Judge Christopher Eccles warned the 31-year-old she could face prison when she is sentenced next month.

But the teenager’s devastated mum Sally Kent said her daughter would not want her to be bitter and admitted she felt sorry for Ochnio.

She said: “I met Magda...she is a very honest person and full of remorse. She is going through the same as me, it has changed her whole life and I, personally, don’t want her to go to prison. It was a tragic accident.”

Ms Kent, from Kidlington, was at the wheel of the Ka when Ochnio smashed into the back of the car while driving at more than 60mph.

Gosford Hill School pupil Charlotte was a back seat passenger in the Ka and died from her injuries at the John Radcliffe Hospital the following day.

Ms Kent continued: “I wake up in the morning and immediately feel the same...I know Magda does as well. She has been devastated.

“Before the court case I was very bitter and I hated her, but the trial has made me come to terms with the way I feel. Charlotte was a very forgiving girl and she would not want me to feel bitter.”

Polish-born Ochnio, who works as a publisher in Jordan Hill, is still being treated for post-traumatic stress. She broke down in tears when the jury cleared her of death by dangerous driving on Friday.

Earlier she told the court: “It was the worst year of my life. I wake up every day and for a split second I can feel like a normal person, but then the recollection of the accident comes back to me.”

Ochnio has now moved from Milton Keynes to Reading, so she can take public transport to work.

Charlotte was an only child and Ms Kent said the family would always struggle to cope with her death. “I don’t think I will ever come to terms with what happened,” she added.

Charlotte, who had also attended Edward Feild School, was described as a grade A student who loved reading.

She was passionate about books and loved the Twilight series of novels, as well as Harry Potter, and was also involved in the Girl Guides.

Charlotte was born eight weeks premature and Ms Kent invited people to make donations in her memory to the John Radcliffe’s Special Care Baby Unit