A 21-year-old woman has described how she and her unborn child incredibly lived through a devastating collision while she was expecting, after a young driver smashed into trees at excessive speed – trapping her inside a burning wreck.

Chloe Batchelar, from Daventry in Northamptonshire, has recounted how she begged Jack Schofield, 24, from Bedworth to reduce his speed just before he lost command of his modified black Audi S3 at an unsanctioned gathering on April 19 last year.

She had reluctantly entered the car with the careless driver after her companion had encountered him on Snapchat merely a day earlier.

The court was told that Schofield took both women out in his altered vehicle around a temporary course established between two roundabouts in Northampton.

However, after attaining 123mph, he struck a kerb, tipped the car over and collided with some trees – resulting in serious injuries to both passengers.

Chloe suffered a serious burn to her back when the car caught fire along with 15 fractures to her spine, two to her neck, a haemorrhage on her heart and severe head injuries.

She has now courageously shared how she was forced to relearn walking following the terrible smash, which also left her experiencing persistent headaches.

But she has also spoken of her overwhelming relief after not only she – but her unborn child – survived the impact, and she was able to welcome daughter Ava on November 27, who weighed 7lb 8oz. Chloe explained that her companion had agreed to meet Schofield at the unofficial event after connecting with him on Snapchat the previous day, while she was eight weeks pregnant.

She did not personally know Jack, the other woman in the crash knew him. It was an automotive gathering, we went along, I did not really want to attend. I was eight weeks pregnant at the time.

Her friend mentioned they were meeting this Jack individual she had encountered on Snapchat a day prior. They arrived at the location and Jack was present. I made it abundantly clear I was pregnant there and then.

I stated I would not be getting into his vehicle if he ever requested it, under no circumstances. My friend urged me to come along but I felt uneasy. He persisted and I eventually gave in as they kept pressuring me.

He accelerated along the track and began driving at high speed and I requested him to slow down and stop showing off. I did observe the speeds, whenever I felt the vehicle going too fast I asked him to reduce speed. I cannot recall how he exceeded 120mph.

I do not remember much after that.

Single mother Chloe remained trapped inside the vehicle after the impact, while Jack and the other passenger managed to escape. According to Chloe, the young driver seemed far more worried about his damaged vehicle than her alarming situation.

She was seated in the rear passenger seat. They removed his door and he was sitting there upset because his window was broken, exclaiming about the damage to his windows. I was still inside the car while it was burning, which was dreadful.

All he cared about was the window. He had newly installed decorative lights so he was more distressed about ruining those. Everyone around us was filming it as the car was on fire, but they did not realise I was still inside.

Many people fetched bottles of water attempting to extinguish it but it kept reigniting. My phone actually automatically called the police, which essentially saved me.

Despite fearing she had lost her baby, Chloe went on to deliver Ava at Northampton General Hospital, who is now five months old.

When I was taken to hospital I believed I had suffered a miscarriage, I kept asking them to examine me. I was trapped inside and thought we were both going to die.

They reassured me relatively quickly, but those initial moments were dreadful. I kept saying thank goodness. I would not stop telling them I had a miscarriage until they conducted tests and put my mind at rest.

They advised that had I remained in the car any longer I would have lost her, because all I breathed in was smoke. From the footage the fire and smoke were enormous. In hospital I continued having regular scans and ended up having my 20-week scan while still an inpatient. On her scan she was simply sitting posing, so she was perfectly fine.

When it came to the delivery I was in labour for only an hour, which is truly miraculous. It ended up being very straightforward in the end.

Since the catastrophic collision, she has experienced ongoing issues including persistent headaches, chronic back pain and lasting scarring.

She sustained 15 fractures to her spine, two to her neck, broken ribs, a lung problem, a haemorrhage on her heart, a head wound and a burn to her back. All this while eight weeks pregnant.

Apparently the seat belt had become wrapped around my neck and that caused the two fractures. I had to learn to walk again. I was admitted to hospital and informed I would need to relearn walking. I was placed in intensive care and then they brought in a back brace to assist.

I was transferred from intensive care to a ward, and whenever I got out of bed I had to wear the back brace. It took me a fortnight to manage walking – I was absolutely determined I would walk again. I spent two months in hospital. They had to monitor my baby and then I developed an infection on the burn on my back.

When I returned home I had a hospital bed and carers for several weeks. I still live with chronic backache and they diagnosed me with postnatal trauma. I believe I will be receiving rehabilitation for my back as it aches constantly. If I walk a particular distance my legs give way.

I experience headaches daily, they are quite severe. Some are manageable now, but I do get them every day. I am unsure whether it is from the head wound or from concussion. I need to do more physiotherapy. My spine is asymmetrical too.

In April, Schofield received a two-year custodial sentence at Northampton Crown Court after pleading guilty to two charges of causing serious injury through dangerous driving.

Schofield, from Bedworth in Warwickshire, was also prohibited from driving for three years and will need to pass an extended driving test before being allowed behind the wheel again.

Detective Constable Lee Norton of Northamptonshire Police commented after the case: Such events on public roads are not only unlawful but, as this case demonstrates, this type of irresponsible conduct invariably endangers lives.

Jack Schofield was not only fortunate to have emerged from this horrifying crash with minimal injuries himself, but extremely lucky that nobody died because of his foolish actions that evening.

Unfortunately, the same cannot be said for his two passengers who will have to live with both the physical and psychological consequences of this incident for the rest of their lives.