A mother-of-two claims a council has refused to pay her compensation after she broke a bone in a pavement fall.

Janine Lawrence is furious because the protruding paving slabs have now been resurfaced.

The 33-year-old, of Arundel Road, Peacehaven, shattered a bone in her left ankle following the fall near Meeching Valley Primary School in Valley Road, Newhaven, in June.

She had been taking her two sons Callum, eight and Jake, three, to see former boxer Chris Eubank open a school fete at the time.

She managed to hobble home but, after a trip to hospital, spent three weeks with her leg in plaster.

She said: "I'm still going to the doctors now. My ankle gives way and I can't run around with the kids anymore or take them on long walks."

Janine took photos of the pavement she blamed for her accident and completed a compensation claim form from East Sussex County Council.

As well as compensation for her broken ankle, she wanted recompense for the taxi fares she paid to send her son to school and the cost of hiring a removal man to help her move home. She had planned to complete the removal herself.

Several months later she was told her claim had been rejected because the paving slabs along the pavement were protruding less than an inch. In one letter the council said she had been turned down following her meeting on August 23 with an inspector at the scene of the accident.

Janine said: "I never met anyone. He must be Mr Invisible. No-one had ever rung me from the council."

A spokeswoman for East Sussex County Council said: "Our loss adjusters have repudiated this claim, as they believe that the County Council is not legally liable.

"Whilst we feel considerable sympathy for Ms Lawrence, we regret that the County Council's insurers will only pay a claim where there is legal liability for negligence or breach of statutory duty."