A Swindon mum-of-two banned from the town's Iceland supermarkets used her child's pram to hide stolen goods from view.

Tabitha McGailey, from the Swindon area, pleaded guilty to two charges of theft at Swindon Magistrates Court on Tuesday.

The 28-year-old stole goods worth £30 from the Cricklade Road supermarket on February 3 and then returned to take goods worth £43.90 from the same shop on February 9.

Keith Ballinger, prosecuting, said: "She hid items in a hood of a pram with her two-year-old child inside.

"On the second occasion, the security guard stopped her and she refused to let the guard check her bags and pram."

The court heard that when the guard tried to take the items back, McGailey pushed the guard away and left the shop, then admitted her crimes when approached by a police officer.

She was convicted of shoplifting from the Orbital Shopping Park in January 2022 and later banned from Swindon's Icelands. The ban remains in place.

Gordon Hotson, defending, explained that his client was short of cash at the time of these latest offences because her benefit payments were late-arriving.

District Judge Joanna Dickens said: "You used your child as a shield to conceal your theft. You put that child in danger."

McGailey must pay £30 in compensation and carry out up to five rehabilitation activity days in the next six months.