A FUNERAL director helped herself to more than £24,000 of company cash.

Jane Lamont was working for AW Lymn in Stapleford and conducted funerals, took payments and helped run the branch.

But in October 2009 the firm, which has its head office in Nottingham, discovered that an invoice for a funeral did not tally with the amount the client had paid, Nottingham Crown Court heard.

Lamont, of Cowley Close, Ilkeston, had been stealing cash over 18 months. When clients paid by cheque, the 52-year-old issued a fake receipt.

Customers believed their account had been settled when as far as the company was concerned money was still outstanding.

After her arrest Lamont pleaded guilty to one charge of theft and 11 of fraud by abuse of position.

The court was told there was no financial loss to any member of the public.

"She was suspended immediately and has now lost her employment," said Dawn Pritchard, prosecuting.

"When she was arrested she made full admissions. She said she had experienced financial difficulties."

Now claiming benefits, Lamont has paid back £228 to the company and has been ordered to pay it £10,000 compensation.

Judge Dudley Bennett told her the offences were a gross breach of trust. He said he had seen a number of references that all said she was a "thoroughly nice person".

He gave her a 12-month prison sentence, suspended for two years; 12 months' supervision by the Probation Service, a three-month curfew and she will be tagged.

Stuart Gosnell, mitigating, said Lamont was thoroughly ashamed of what she had done. "She has lost her reputation," he added. "She has damaged the firm she worked for, for a number of years."

The judge said she was not a woman who had lived a high lifestyle.

"You have pleaded guilty to all this," he said. "You have not only never been in any kind of trouble before in your life, but at 52 years of age you are able to produce to me references from people whose opinion I value and trust, which go way beyond the references I normally read."

After the case, managing director Nigel Lymn Rose said: "Jane was a trusted employee of many years' experience and we were both disappointed and hurt that she had decided to take such action.

"Having carried out a full review, it is only fortunate that none of our clients lost any money through her actions and the full cost was borne by us.

"Our primary concern was none of the clients should be impacted or hurt by any of the actions of our staff.

"All the other staff were shocked by it. They are all caring individuals, so to have one that had let them down hurt everybody."