A young woman has won £1.8 million in damages for devastating head injuries she suffered in a car crash after a rock festival.

Shahna Thwaites, 22, dreamed of a career in television but was left with a changed personality and severe brain damage after the accident in June 1997.

She was one of five Brighton students returning from a weekend at the Glastonbury Festival when their car overturned in the fast lane of the M5 near Bristol.

Two of the five, Nicola Cripps, of Milton Road, Polegate, and Jeremy Wood, of Queen's Road, Brighton, were killed.

Victora Jeffrey, a passenger in the front of the car, told an inquest on the two girls that the group had taken cannabis, speed and LSD at the festival.

Ecstasy, amphetamines and alcohol was found in the bloodstream of Nicola Cripps, who was driving the Fiat Punto.

Shahna's father, Tristan, 50, from Yapton, said: "The whole court process has been very stressful for Shahna. Her injuries have left her prone to emotional outbursts in any event but the whole thing has upset her deeply.

"It's a huge relief it's over because it has been dragging on for four years. Now we can look to the future though obviously we have great sadness about the things she will miss out on."

Shahna, who was a bright 18-year-old studying for A-levels at Brighton Technical College, was in a coma for more than three weeks. Despite making a remarkable recovery, she will never lead an independent life.

Her father sued the estate of the driver, Miss Cripps, whose insurers accepted 80 per cent liability for the accident.

After last-minute negotiations outside the High Court in London on Wednesday, a settlement was reached and approved by Judge Playford.

Mr Thwaites said the end of court proceedings came as a huge relief and meant the family could relax in the knowledge Shahna would be looked after for the rest of her life.

But he said the money could not come close to compensating his daughter for what she had lost.

He said: "She'll never be able to go to university and we will probably never see her go through all the general landmarks of a young woman's life.

"She'd been hoping to be a television presenter. But the accident has left her a completely different person.

"She was very outgoing, bright and bubbly and very well thought of by everyone. After the accident we were overwhelmed by sacks full of mail.

"But the accident left her disinhibited and her speech and thinking are rather one dimensional.

"She has severe short-term memory difficulties and has trouble remembering things from one day to the next.

"And she has a facial disfigurement as a result of her injuries which is difficult for her because she was a very attractive young girl."

The money will be invested to safeguard Shahna's future and she will live with her parents for the forseeable future.

Mr Thwaites said: "Shahna can only be left on her own for short periods but we normally don't like to leave her for longer than two hours. Even then we like to be within a short distance.

"My wife has, to a large extent, sacrificed her working life over the last four years."

He said the families of the young people who died in the accident had not been forgotten, adding: "It was a horrific accident which has completely overturned people's lives and traumatised them and had a ripple effect touching everyone.

Paul Rees, counsel for the Thwaites, told the judge in written submissions: "The claim is about the injuries sustained by Shahna Thwaites, the impact of these upon her and her family and the reasonable way for her to be supported for the rest of her life.

"She has, at 22 years of age, major permanent disabilities which will dictate what she can do safely, where she can live safely and how dependent upon others she will be for the rest of her life."