A SCHOOL kitchen supervisor has avoided jail after stealing more than £37,000 in canteen takings when her and her husband ran into financial problems.

Elizabeth Heaton, of Chatham Street, Leigh, was originally given a 10-month sentence by Judge Robert Trevor-Jones at Liverpool Crown Court.

However after hearing that the 45-year-old is to repay the stolen money from her pension fund and has no previous convictions he suspended the term for two years, pointing out that it had ‘been a very close call’.

He also ordered her to carry out 240 hours’ unpaid work and said it was sad to see her in the dock but that she had brought this on herself through ‘persistent dishonesty’.

Heaton was a kitchen supervisor at Rose Bridge Academy, Wigan, where she had worked for 21 years.

She was employed by Metrofresh, a department within the council whose services include catering.

Judge Trevor-Jones said: “At the very least you stole in excess of £37,000 from your employer in the clearest breach of trust.

“Over at least many months you were dishonestly failing to bank the money concerned and failing to provide the necessary paperwork and were squirrelling the money away.

“I accept it was not used to fund an extravagant lifestyle but to stem debts and liabilities you and your husband had following the collapse of his business. I accept that was the catalyst.

“When the balloon went up and you knew there was to be an inspection of the school you went immediately to the school and employers and accepted sole responsibility.”

The judge added that she had brought ‘utter shame and disgrace’ on her family and embarrassment to the school.

Heaton had pleaded guilty to theft between July 1, 2011, and February 27, 2014.

Nicholas Walker, prosecuting, told the court that her dishonesty started after the school introduced a cashless ‘card’ system for students to pay for their lunches.

Heaton delayed banking the money paid into machines by the students to load the cards with credit and also e-forms recording the amounts sent for banking.

She did not send in the forms at the same time as the banking, which allowed her to hide the true amount being received by the school.

Mr Walker said that the true value of the money taken would probably never be known and could be significantly higher than £37,000.

Amos Waldman, defending, said that Heaton had been too embarrassed to discuss her debts and seek professional help.

After her husband’s business collapsed they lost their home and owed more money.

Mr Waldman told the court that she took out a loan at an ‘extortionate rate of interest’ and ‘matters spiralled out of control’.

He added that she had hoped to get money from her husband’s pension fund but the investment collapsed.