Rebekah Vardy says she was abused during Jehovah's Witness childhood

Media personality Rebekah Vardy has alleged she was sexually abused as a child by an individual in the Jehovah's Witness community.

Speaking as part of a new Channel 4 documentary, Mrs Vardy said she was abused between the ages of 11 and 15.

She claimed the alleged abuse was covered up by "elders", senior male leaders within the religious group.

In a statement, Jehovah's Witnesses said they "lacked the information to comment on individual cases".

Jehovah's Witnesses are a Christian denomination with around 8.5 million followers worldwide and which believes the destruction of the world is imminent.

Mrs Vardy, who grew up as a Jehovah's Witness, says she hopes by speaking about her experiences that she will be able to show others there is a "light at the end of the tunnel".

She will be seen making the accusation as part of a Channel 4 documentary, Rebekah Vardy: Jehovah's Witnesses And Me, which is broadcast on Channel 4 at 22:00 BST on Tuesday.

Speaking to ITV's Good Morning Britain about the documentary, Mrs Vardy said she was "scared of the consequences" of speaking about sexual abuse due to "the fear of bringing shame on to the family".

"I found this part of my life a bit of an obstacle but I wanted to use this obstacle to create an opportunity to help other people that have been in similar situations and just hopefully show that there's light at the end of the tunnel," she told the programme.

"I think I realised that I've probably only just scratched the surface, I think my story isn't unique and there's going to be plenty of others, as have already come out, that will continue to come out."

Jehovah's Witnesses impose a strict moral code on members, including that homosexuality is a sin, and reportedly punish those who deviate from their beliefs by "disfellowshipping" them, ostracising them from the community.

In a statement to GMB, Jehovah's Witnesses said: "Elders are directed to immediately report an allegation of child sexual abuse to authorities, even if there is only one complainant."

The group added that the "courts have rejected the allegation that disfellowshipping and so-called shunning results in social isolation and discrimination and it is simply misleading and discriminatory to imply that our religion is controlling".

They also said they "lacked the information to comment on individual cases".

When asked about the long-term psychological effects, Vardy replied: "I've created part of myself that is really strong now. I have a lot of barriers. I'm quite unemotional. I'm not a very emotional person.

"I think a lot of that has to do with what I went through in my past... It was an obstacle in my life and I want to use my experiences to help other people."

She sued Coleen Rooney for damages last year after her former friend accused Mrs Vardy of leaking private information about her to the media.