A gardener who tends Walsall Arboretum has been jailed for nine months for helping his father falsely claim benefits of more than £22,000 over 10 years.

Walsall Council employee Mark Horan, aged 42, failed to declare that he lived at the same address, in Chaucer Road, Harden, Walsall, as his 75-year-old father Ronald when he filled in claim forms.

He admitted two counts of dishonestly furnishing false information between November 1997 and 2007 at Wolverhampton Crown Court yesterday.

His father Ronald Horan pleaded guilty to two counts of making a false statement that he failed to disclose Mark was living with him.

He was sentenced to nine months jail, suspended for two years and was also given a two-year probation supervision and ordered to pay £500 costs.

Mr Philip Brunt, prosecuting on behalf of Walsall Council, said: “Ronald Horan said his son Mark was not living with him which enabled him him to claim certain benefits throughout a ten-year period.

“The fraud was uncovered via a data match exercise carried out when Mark applied for his job.

“Walsall Council is taking part in a national fraud initiative.”

Mr Richard Devenport, defending Mark Horan, said: “It is one of those spur of the moment things when he helped his father fill those forms in.”

Mr Mark Knowles, defending Ronald Horan, said his client was entitled to receive benefits, but lesser amounts.

He was repaying the money.

Walsall Council executive director Rory Borealis said: “The council will now use its disciplinary procedures to take urgent action into this matter.”