A care home deputy manager who cheated four residents out of more than £9,000 walked free from court after a judge said she was ‘almost as vulnerable as the people she was caring for.’

Judge Jamie Tabor QC told Christine Green: “This is an exceptional course because I regard you as almost as vulnerable as the people you were caring for.”

He sentenced Green to 10 months jail, suspended for two years, and ordered her to do 200 hours of unpaid work. She was also ordered to forfeit £180 cash she had in her possession and she must pay £15 a week in compensation for 48 weeks.

Christine Green of Ross-on-Wye, took the money from the bank accounts of residents of the Stroud and District Homes Foundation who were not capable of looking after their own affairs.

Prosecutor Julian Kesner said it was a ‘crude’ form of theft, which was bound to be discovered whenever an audit was carried out. Green pleaded guilty to four charges of fraud.

Catherine Spedding, defending, said that Green was shocked to discover the amount she had stolen - she had taken it in small sums and had no idea how it had mounted up.

The money had just been used to pay household bills and despite the offences she was still in debt with £2,000 owing in council tax, the barrister said.

Green had two children when she was very young and then had an 11 year relationship with a man who suddenly left after texting her from downstairs in their house to say he had a new 24 year old girlfriend, Ms Spedding added. “Her life fell apart from that time. She could not cope financially.”

Judge Tabor told Green she had breached the trust of the vulnerable people she was paid to look after and had ’failed miserably’ in her duties.