Two boys, aged ten and 12, have been accused of a robbery in which an 88-year-old woman suffered a head injury, writes Victoria Owen.

The woman was robbed in Barnet Street, Cowley, Oxford, as she walked home from the Cowley Road shops at 1pm on Friday.

When her handbag was snatched, she fell backwards, hitting her head on the pavement. She required hospital treatment but has since been released. The boys have also been charged with another handbag snatch in east Oxford last week.

A 14-year-old youth, also from east Oxford, has been charged with handling stolen goods in relation to the Barnet Street robbery.

All three, who are from east Oxford, will appear before a youth court in Oxford. A date has yet to be fixed.

The goods belonging to the 88-year-old have been found and returned to her. A police spokesman said: "The public in east Oxford can rest assured we take these crimes very seriously and they can feel easier walking the streets."