THE former manager of the Chicken Ranch bar at Britwell Community Centre has been found guilty of stealing from the till.

Chris Faulkner, 58, of Church Road, Old Windsor had denied charges of conspiring to steal, false accounting and theft by an employee. A jury at Oxford Crown Court unanimously found him guilty on Monday.

Former Britwell Parish Council clerk Lynne Booker, 53, of Calbroke Road, Slough had pleaded guilty at an earlier hearing to one charge of conspiracy to steal.

Sentencing was adjourned on both until July 27.

The two Britwell Parish Council employees were arrested after discrepancies in financial reporting were noted by parish councillor Paula Murphy who challenged Mrs Booker in February 2015.

The theft related to money mainly taken from the bar by Mr Faulkner. This was concealed from the council by Mrs Booker in the accounts which she had falsified before presenting to the elected members. However, the situation was not picked up by the then auditors.

But following Cllr Murphy’s challenge the Parish Council subsequently complained to police in 2015. Events they complained about had spanned as along as 14 months.

Mrs Booker’s role as clerk at Britwell has now been taken over by locum clerk Jonathan Holder.