Family's horror as their daughter, 14, is punched and kicked by bully – as they share footage of the attack to shame social media giants who let it be spread by thug's accomplices

A 14-year-old girl was filmed as she was punched and kicked by a bully before the distressing footage was posted online.

Erin Philips was walking home from school in Upton, Chester, when she was ambushed by an older girl as her accomplices filmed the attack.

Horrific footage shows Erin being grabbed by the hair before being kneed repeatedly in the face as she tries to shield her head. 

Within hours, the footage had been widely shared on social media and the school girl began to receive abusive messages.

Her parents have called the assault 'disgusting' and have shared the footage on Twitter to call on social media giants to stop bullying videos being posted online.

Step-father Lee Wharton, 46, from Little Sutton, Cheshire, said: 'I believe the attack was filmed deliberately so it could be shared on social media.

'It was a disgusting attack but Erin didn't know she was being filmed at the time.

'Afterwards, she received messages saying things like "you got banged" which made her feel even worse.

'It's simply unacceptable that these sort of videos are allowed to be shared online.'

Lee said a group of girls had been bullying Erin for a weeks but he was unaware of it until the video appeared online.

He said Erin had been 'moody and off her food' but she'd not told either him, her mother or the school in the hope it would stop.

Since sharing the video on Twitter, Mr Wharton has has received the backing from former footballers Neville Southall, Peter Reid and Robbie Fowler.   

He said: 'These companies should be doing a lot more because they're making a lot of money.

'They should police their content much more effectively so kids don't suffer so much distress.

'They should monitor what's going online and take stuff down that's unsuitable.

'The government could also do more too by bringing in tougher laws.' 

Cheshire Police said they were aware of the footage and were investigating.

Mr Wharton said Erin was contacted by the school on Friday and told that four pupils had been expelled as a result of the video. 

It comes after social media giants have been pressured to remove content glorifying bullying, suicide or self-harm following the death of Molly Russell.

Instagram said earlier this month that it was banning all graphic self-harm videos after the 14-year-old took her own life.

The government is also considering tighter regulation of tech companies, which could include a mandatory code of conduct and fines for non-compliance.

The culture secretary, Jeremy Wright, is due to unveil the government's proposals at the end of this month.