A GRANDMOTHER has spoken about how she was attacked on her way to a WI meeting.

As reported in the Advertiser earlier this week, the retired 74-year-old childminder from Liden was walking to the meeting at St Timothy's Church, Liden, at 7.15pm on Monday when a young man grabbed her handbag and pushed her to the ground.

The woman, who does not wish to be named, said: "I was just walking up to the church, when I felt this tremendous pull on the arm holding my bag.

"I didn't let go of the bag, but he pulled so hard that I went over right on to my face. While I was down on the ground he grabbed my bag and ran off."

She said she was shocked by the attack, and suffered two black eyes, a bleeding nose and cuts and grazes.

She added: "The vicar was very sweet, and came running out of the church with a pile of hassocks for me to lie on while we waited for the ambulance."

The vicar of St Timothy's, Rev Tony Knapp, said: "This was a terrible thing to happen, especially as it was early evening and quite light.

"We have had some problems with petty vandalism by children, and they like to play football against St Timothy's church door, but we have never had anything like this happen before.

"Liden is generally such a safe place to live that I think everyone is in shock."