A FELIXSTOWE headmaster's personal assistant has been banned from driving for 18 months after experts proved she had been over the limit when she crashed her car.

A FELIXSTOWE headmaster's personal assistant has been banned from driving for 18 months after experts proved she had been over the limit when she crashed her car.

Julia Boreham, of Thorn Way, Felixstowe, had claimed that several “swigs” of alcohol consumed after the smash near her home on October 29 last year had tipped her over the limit.

However magistrates heard that Boreham's test reading of 158mg of alcohol in 100ml of blood, nearly twice the legal limit, would have put her over the limit regardless of drinking following the accident.

Appearing at South East Suffolk Magistrates' Court on Friday Boreham, who works at Deben High School, pleaded guilty to drink driving and failing to stop after an accident.

She had denied the charges at earlier appearances.

Lesla Small, prosecuting, said Boreham had crashed while pulling up near her home at around 1am.

While approaching her drive she crashed into a neighbours' fence and knocked over a concrete bollard.

The neighbour called police and Boreham was arrested at around 1.30am.

Ms Small said: “When police arrived she said she had consumed three swigs of Irish cream alcohol.”

Boreham said she had drunk three glasses of wine during the evening.

Magistrates disqualified Boreham from driving for 18 months and fined £400 for the drink driving offence and £200 for failing to stop after an accident.

She was also ordered to pay costs of £34.