A former South Craven minister has used her own experience of being a victim of child sex abuse to bring about a case of “restorative justice” in Mauritius.

Charlotte Common, who left the Airedale Methodist Circuit in 2012 to do mission work in Mauritius, met a suspected paedophile awaiting trial in the remote nation.

She said: “Talking to this gentle man, healing took place within my soul as I began to understand his huge pain. Over the following months I became his mentor.

“He very bravely opened up his soul. We became a team with enormous respect for each other and recognised that our combined experiences could be a useful tool to provide education for the prevention of paedophilia.”

She added: “The purpose of restorative justice is healing deep wounds inflicted by aggressors to their victims.

“A former victim, who does not have to be the original victim, and an aggressor, who does not have to be the original aggressor, are brought together to share their guilt, shame, anger and frustration in a dramatic yet healing way.

“I successfully brought the first case of restorative justice to Mauritius by preparing the presumed paedophile and a young woman, who had been the victim of sex abuse by another. Over two hours, both began to heal.”