A carer has today been sentenced after being convicted of the ill-treatment of two vulnerable adults.

A judge urged care homes to be vigilant over ensuring its workers were not feeling under too much pressure after he imposed a suspended jail term on a 48 year-old carer, who ill-treated two vulnerable adults.

Karen Gathergood, of Old Fakenham Road, Foxley, was convicted of seven counts of ill-treatment of a person who lacks mental capacity, following a week-long trial at Norwich Crown Court.

The offences related to a male and female victim, both in their 30s, who were at a care home, near Fakenham, where Gathergood worked.

The abuse took place between June 2014 and February, last year, and included Gathergood slapping and pulling the hair of the female victim, who had severe learning difficulties, and forcefully dragging the male victim, who also had severe learning difficulties and cerebral palsy, out of a conservatory after he refused to eat 'his greens'.

Sentencing Gathergood to nine months jail suspended for two years, Judge Mark Dennis said that carers were in a position of great trust and carried out a valuable service but said in this case it seemed to indicate that there had been a 'build-up of pressures and difficulties ' on Gathergood, which led to her acting in this way.

'This case highlights the need for fellow care workers and also management at care homes to be vigilant.'

He said they should be aware of any build-up of pressure and said: 'They should act on this as soon as it is obvious.'

He said up until the offences, Gathergood had showed care and responsibility over a number of years.

Jude Durr for Gathergood, said she was of previous good character and if she had an immediate prison sentence it would be her family who would suffer.

After the case Det Con Gemma Weeks, of the Adult Abuse investigation unit, said: 'This was a particularly emotive case as the victims were very vulnerable and completely at the mercy of their carer who abused her position of trust to ill-treat them, instead of care for them.'