A PRESTON woman who falsely claimed more than £4,000 in benefits while working for the DSS has escaped a jail sentence.

Rachel Clear, of Waterloo Terrace, Ashton, admitted 10 charges of obtaining benefit by deception when she appeared before Preston Crown Court last week.

Clear, 26, was placed on probation for two years and a further 75 similar offences were taken into consideration.

Mr Damian Nolan, prosecuting, told the court that Clear had been employed by the DSS between September 1995 and April 1996.

The court heard that she claimed invalid care allowance and income support, which she was not entitled to, amounting to the tune of some £4,336.

She began making the false claims while she was still employed by the DSS.

The fraud had taken place between March 1996 and September 1997.

Miss Rowena Goode, defending, said the money - claimed over an 18-month period - had not been spent on a lavish lifestyle and was used to pay off debts and general living expenses while Clear attended university.

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