BBC News
Published
image captionTimothy Johnstone and Claire Boyle arriving at Kilmarnock Sheriff Court
A woman who kept a two-year-old child in a makeshift cage has been ordered to carry out community service.
Claire Boyle, 34, from Ayrshire, claimed she kept the child in the modified cot for their own protection.
The situation was uncovered when another child, aged four, escaped from the flat they were staying in and was discovered roaming the streets alone.
Boyle and her partner, 57-year-old Timothy Johnstone, were both convicted of neglect in February.
The offences took place in October 2018.
After a trial, Sheriff Higgins convicted Boyle of neglecting the two-year-old and the four-year-old. Johnstone was convicted of neglecting the four-year-old.