Four teenage asylum seekers have been arrested following the alleged rape of a 15-year-old girl at a Kent school.

Kent Police says it has launched an investigation following the attack in Dover last Monday.

The arrested Afghan boys are said to be aged between 13 and 16, and are understood to have arrived in the country in small boats last year, The Times has reported.

Police say they have since been released on bail while inquiries continue.

A 15-year-old boy was arrested on suspicion of rape while the others, were arrested on suspicion of assisting in the attack.

Sources told The Times that three boys, aged 13, 15 and 16, are alleged to have held the girl down while the fourth boy raped her.

The boys, who cannot be identified for legal reasons, were held in custody at a police station in Canterbury last week.

They are all believed to attend the same school as the alleged victim, and are understood to be unaccompanied children seeking asylum, in the care of Kent County Council’s social services.

The number of unaccompanied children arriving in small boats has risen in the last two years, making up a fifth of the record breaking 45,756 arrivals last year.

A large proportion of the children have been Afghans, following the resurgence of the Taliban.