A WOMAN who ran up an £18,000 DSS fraud has been jailed for four months.

Preston Crown Court heard that Sandra Meakin made a lawful claim for benefits when she and her husband separated.

But they reunited after six weeks and she failed to tell the authorities what had happened.

The 52-year-old mother-of-three, of Great Meadow, Astley Village, Chorley, had pleaded guilty to five offences of obtaining property by deception.

She asked for 204 further offences to be considered.

The court heard that the deception lasted nearly four years from September 1996 through to August 2000.

Observations were carried out which supported the fact that the defendant and her husband were a couple.

Defence barrister Miss Kath Johnson said that following the reconciliation Meakin had failed to take action to correct the situation.

Matters snowballed and it was a very difficult bandwagon to get off.

The money went on ordinary household expenses, but Meakin had been extremely frightened and chastened by her prosecution.

The judge, Recorder Anthony Edwards, said that in the circumstances only a custodial sentence could be justified.