A 21-YEAR-OLD jailed for her part in the summer riots is helping other youngsters stay out of trouble and says her actions were "wrong".

Alicia Smith served six weeks of a six-month jail sentence after pleading guilty to entering with intent to steal.

The student, from South Norwood, was arrested on August 8 at Argos in Church Street, carrying ten packets of Hubba Bubba chewing gum she had stolen minutes before from a nearby convenience store.

The conviction cost Alicia her job as a La Senza sales assistant, but she has resumed her voluntary role as a teaching assistant at Educational Excellence, a tutorial college that specialises in getting youngsters "back on track".

"I am very lucky to be working here," Alicia said. "I was worried that I had let Mr Thangavalu [the owner] down."

It was after leaving the college in Brighton Road, South Croydon, during the early evening of August 8 that, Alicia said, she got caught up in the riots.

"I had to pass through Croydon on my way home," she said.

"The bus stopped running at Croydon because of what was going on.

"Everyone was just getting caught up in the moment. It was not like I could not afford the gum; it was just there.

"Then the police started closing in."

The photography student was left stunned when she and her sister, a model who became a poster girl in the national media for rioters' privileged lives, were jailed.

"After we were arrested, I thought, OK, we are going to have to pay a fine," Alicia said.

"But then we saw from prison what had happened; we knew that would reflect on us.

"My mother was expecting me home any minute – my main concern was my parents.

"Of course what I did was wrong – at the end of the day, that is someone else's property.

"But at the same time, the punishment should fit the crime."

Alicia says she is lucky in being able to do something constructive after her conviction.

She said: "I spoke to people inside who had lost their jobs due to their riot convictions.

"When you get out, they offer to put you on Job Seeker's Allowance, other benefits. It is like they want you to be a bum. But I did not want to be that person."

While Alicia is now working as a volunteer, Mr Thangavalu plans to take her on full-time.

The youngster, who has taken a year out from a photography course at South Bank College, said her age helps her to relate with the students.

She said: "It is about making sure they get their work done and understand what work is about.

"People here really want to learn but sometimes they just need that extra push."

Mr Thangavalu added of his protégé: "We have to be positive. We understand people make mistakes.

"It is about saying, I have been there, done that, and now I want to give something back."