A BINGE-DRINKING mother who broke one woman’s nose and pulled out another’s hair following two separate and unprovoked attacks has escaped going to jail.

Samantha Phipps, aged 35, committed “serious” assaults on Claire Nurden and Claire Jones in the Good Measure pub in Caldicot last May.

The defendant then attacked the former victim again a few weeks later in the town, punching her to the ground and further attacking her when she was on the floor.

Prosecutor Suzanne Payne said the first series of assaults happened on May 11 when Phipps lunged at Miss Nurden in the smoking area at the Good Measure.

She told Newport Crown Court: “The defendant punched the victim in the face repeatedly and she passed out and caused her a black eye.”

Phipps then went inside the pub and attacked Miss Jones in another senseless assault, pulling out some of her hair and causing her a bloodshot eye after scratching her eyeball and also a lost nail.

Miss Payne said that it took pub goers several minutes to pull the defendant off the victim when both were on the floor.

A fortnight later, on May 25, Phipps dived at Miss Nurden again when she was walking past the defendant’s house.

In a victim impact statement, the complainant said: “This attack was unexpected, unprovoked and quite shocking.”

Miss Nurden suffered a broken nose and eye socket and needed treatment at Newport’s Royal Gwent Hospital.

Phipps, of Westfield, Caldicot, pleaded guilty to causing grievous bodily harm and two counts of assault occasioning actual bodily harm.

The court heard she had no previous convictions.

Richard Ace, mitigating, said: “She accepts full responsibility and says that her actions were, quite frankly, disgusting and she is appalled by her behaviour.”

He said Phipps, an employee with a cleaning company, was a hard-working woman who had overcome a heroin addiction.

Mr Ace said his client had been binge-drinking at the time of the offences which made her become “very aggressive”.

The court heard she cared for her two children.

Judge Richard Williams told Phipps the photographs of her second attack were “horrifying”.

But he said he was able to draw back from an immediate custodial sentence.

He jailed Phipps for nine months, suspended for 18 months.

She must carry out a 20-day rehabilitation activity requirement and carry out 180 hours of unpaid work.

Phipps will be subject to a curfew for three months, between the hours of 7pm and 7am.

Restraining orders were also imposed, prohibiting her from contacting her two victims for three years and she must pay a £140 victim surcharge.