The mother of a psychiatric patient who was jailed for assaulting health staff says she is "appalled" that her daughter ever ended up in prison.

Sharron McAllister, 36, from Carlisle, was locked up for 70 days late last month after a judge heard she was violent towards staff and a fellow patient at the city's Carleton Clinic.

But her family and lawyers argued it was "inhumane" to jail someone with such severe mental health problems - including schizophrenia and a personality disorder.

Now, after having her sentence cut on appeal, Sharron's mother Jacqueline McAllister has spoken of her daughter's "ordeal".

She told the News & Star: "The court have made an example of her - of a mentally ill lass who was seriously unwell.

"When she went to court she was still in the Carleton Clinic. Two psychiatrists agreed that she couldn't leave for overnight stays. She was too ill.

"Days later the court were saying she was fit and well and sending her to jail. It should never have got that far. It was a joke."

After serving 14 days in Durham prison, Sharron had her sentence cut on appeal, allowing her to be freed from jail.

She is now once again being cared for in the Carleton Clinic.

Mrs McAllister, who also lives in Carlisle, said: "She's been very shaken up by the whole experience. She's happy to be back, but it's been a real ordeal.

"She wasn't even getting the medication she needs in prison."

The assaults happened while she was being cared for at the Hadrian Unit of the Carleton Clinic earlier this year.

She was later moved to the more secure Rowanwood psychiatric intensive care unit, on the same site.

But Mrs McAllister said it came after a really difficult time for her daughter, who has battled mental illness for years.

"She had a horrific breakdown. The worst she's had in the past 13 years of her illness," she explained.

"She lost her children and broke up with her ex partner. The combination of lots of things led to her health deteriorating. She suffers from schizophrenia and paranoia. When she gets in a low mood, that triggers it. She's like a pot that's on the boil."

Mrs McAllister said getting the help Sharron needed wasn't easy.

She felt her daughter was so ill that she needed hospitalised, but said nobody listened.

At one point things got so bad that she called an ambulance, resulting in Sharron finally being admitted to hospital.

Mrs McAllister said there were no beds in Carlisle, so she was initially sent to a mental health unit in Barrow.

"We tried to get her back, but there were no beds. We waited three weeks to get her back to Carlisle.

"She went into the Hadrian's Unit. Her state of mind really wasn't good. She wasn't on the right medication.

"They began to realise she had a violent temper and moved her to Rowanwood. It was really bad," she explained.

Mrs McAllister said it was during this period that the assaults occurred.

"Because she assaulted staff, it went to court. She went to the police station and was charged, but she didn't even understand what they were on about, because of her state of mind. They then waited until she was on the right medication, before taking it to court," she said.

"I sympathise with the staff, but are you telling me that there's no safety net? No proper measures to keep her safe herself and other people safe? I think they were short-staffed.

"She was seeing her dead grandmother, hallucinating. That's the kind of illness we are talking about.

"She's not a violent person when she's fit and well. She would never do anything like this. It's her illness."

Mrs McAllister said that they were absolutely dismayed when Sharron was handed a jail sentence.

"It was a proper jail," she said. "She spent the first two days in a clinic for prisoners, but then moved into the normal cells. She wasn't getting her proper medication.

"The judge at the appeal said she was worse when she came out than when she went in. He said it didn't add up.

"It should never have been in court, but to make an example of her like this is even worse. I was appalled. Everyone has been appalled.

"You don't expect your daughter to go into the mental health unit, then end up in prison.

"When I spoke to her afterwards she just said 'mam, I don't ever want to go back there'. It's knocked her for six."

She is pleased her daughter is now getting the help she needs, but is concerned this will continue to hang over her.

As part of her new sentence, she must meet various probation terms or could end up back in prison.