A mother of four “buried her head in the sand” while fleecing the taxpayer out of more than £42,000 in benefits.

Kelly Passmore failed to tell the authorities that she was living with her “on off” partner over a period of five years, Bradford Crown Court heard on Tuesday.

Passmore, 34, of Mayfield View, Wyke, Bradford, pleaded guilty to dishonestly claiming Housing Benefit and Income Support between July, 2011, and November, 2016.

Prosecutor Ian Howard said that Passmore’s original claim for benefits, in April, 2010, was genuine but she should have alerted Bradford Council and the Department of Work and Pensions when she began living with her partner.

The fraud came to light in April, 2017, when Passmore admitted that her circumstances had changed.

She told investigators: “I just buried my head in the sand.”

Mr Howard said the amount of benefit overpaid to Passmore totalled £42,675.

John Bottomley, solicitor advocate for Passmore, said she was a full-time mother of previous good character.

Her case was sent to the crown court by Bradford and Keighley Magistrates Court so that a Proceeds of Crime Act timetable could be set but Passmore was already paying back the money by having it deducted from her benefits.

Mr Bottomley said her claim was not fraudulent from the outset and there was no evidence of her leading a lavish lifestyle.

“She doesn’t deal well with money, as she herself said, she buried her head in the sand,” he told the court.

When challenged, Passmore immediately accepted what she had done.

“She made bad decisions and did not budget well,” Mr Bottomley said.

Judge Neil Davey QC sentenced Passmore to ten months imprisonment, suspended for 12 months.

She was ordered to do 100 hours of unpaid work and to attend a rehabilitation activity requirement with the probation service.

Judge Davey said the input from the probation service was designed to help Passmore budget in the future and get her life back on track.