A woman has admitted deliberately starting a fire in a disused flat in Newcastle-under-Lyme.

Sarah Salt, 44, from the Porthill area of Newcastle-under-Lyme, was jailed for 27 months at Stoke-on-Trent Crown Court on last Tuesday (21 February) after pleading guilty to arson at an earlier hearing.

She was also ordered to pay a surcharge of £228.

The court heard how crews from Staffordshire Fire and Rescue Service received reports, shortly after 11.20pm on 15 October 2022, of a fire inside of an abandoned flat near Boulton Street.

Nobody was injured in the blaze in October 2022 (Staffordshire Fire and Rescue).

Crews from Hanley and Sandyford arrived at the scene two minutes later and forced entry into the room in order to bring the blaze under control as quickly as possible.

Additional crews from Longton and Burslem arrived shortly after and made sure everyone was evacuated from nearby properties as a precautionary measure. 

The fire was extinguished in the early hours of 16 October and residents from nearby evacuated properties were then able to return home. 

No one was reported injured.

Following an investigation, the fire was deemed to have been ignited deliberately.

Darren Jackson, Station Manager at Staffordshire Fire and Rescue Service, said: "I am pleased that Salt was handed a custodial sentence for her dangerous actions. 

"Such actions have a significant impact upon local communities and put our fire fighters at risk. 

"Thanks to colleagues at Staffordshire Police for all of the hard work that has gone into achieving this outcome."

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