Alexander Westwood: Actor accused of child sexual assaults allegedly demanded £18k for missed lessons

Alexander Westwood, 24, is standing trial at Wolverhampton Crown Court after being accused of 26 charges of sexual assault against two children and former pupils of his acting school, including rape.

The mother of one of the actor’s victims told the court she believed she owed him £18,000 for acting classes after withdrawing her child upon learning she was being sexually abused.

The court heard the teenager attended lessons at the former BBC Doctors star's flat alone in 2021 and claims she was forced to have sex during lessons and filmed naked on Westwood's iPad.

The jury of seven men and five women watched excerpts of one of his pupil's police interviews where she accused him of repeatedly sexually assaulting her.

Her mother then took the stand, becoming visibly emotional after being cross-examined by Westwood's lawyer, James Bloomer. She was notably upset about not being able to give a personal statement at the conclusion of her testimony, which was translated by an interpreter.

During her testimony, she alleged that a contract signed by her daughter stipulated that Westwood would be paid £18,000 if her daughter failed to attend lessons. She said: “The police told me not to worry about the contract because she was a minor and it was not legally certifiable."

However, under cross-examination, she admitted that she had never personally seen the contract in question and could not recall who had informed her about its terms. She added: “My daughter had to have counselling after what he did to her in those lessons. I phoned the police to report what he had done to her."

The court was shown an entry from the girl's college journal which outlined her mother's complaints about Westwood's conduct and the presence of the video on his iPad of the pupil naked.

The court was also shown a video, from Westwood's apartment, where the mother and a male companion went to confront him about the payment.

Westwood has since denied all charges, claiming those who have levelled charges against him have individual motivations to lie about the allegations.

The trial continues.