A grandmother took to the streets of Carlisle with an axe, after trying to hunt down the woman who slapped her son.

Sandra Bright was heard shouting "If someone tries it, they will get this," during the incident earlier this month.

Magistrates sitting in Carlisle heard that Bright, 47, picked up the weapon after hearing about the slapping incident that happened in a convenience store on the outskirts of the city.

Pam Ward, prosecuting said that Bright, of Newtown Close, had gone to an address to confront the woman on February 2, following the incident at the One Stop shop on Newtown Road.

However, when she arrived she was greeted by two men who were aggressive towards her.

Mrs Ward said: "She went home and picked up the axe. [Bright] was angry and agitated. She said to her friend: 'If someone tries it they will get this.'"

She said Bright had told police she intended to use the axe for self defence.

The court was told that Bright was going back to confront the men when she was seen waving the axe around between Newtown Road and Raffles Avenue.

She was later found by police at her friend's house on Shadygrove Road.

"They found an axe under the sofa where she had been sitting," Mrs Ward said.

Sara Budniak, defending, said that Bright was "deeply regretful and remorseful" about what had happened.

She added that Bright had been subject to abuse from her neighbours on the estate.

"Her son was caught up in an argument in the local shop," Miss Budniak explained. "A female had slapped her son."

She added: "[My client] was at her wits' end. She'd been called nasty names."

Magistrates requested the case be adjourned for a short time while a pre-sentence report was prepared.

Probation officer Jean McNeish told magistrates that Bright was a grandmother as well as a mother, and had a history of drug use - but is currently clean.

She said: "[Bright] was not under the influence of drugs at the time.

"She does drink alcohol, but not every day. She does at weekends if she's feeling particularly stressed."

Bright was told by magistrates that there was "great potential" for harm to be caused during the incident, stating that it passed the custody threshold.

She was sentenced to six weeks in prison for the offence, reduced from nine weeks due to her early guilty plea. However magistrates decided to suspend it for 12 months.

Bright was also ordered to complete a rehabilitation requirement and pay costs of £200.