A PENSIONER who drove on the wrong side of the road and hit a car, killing a teacher and her young son, has been spared jail.

Sally Rundle’s Renault Clio ploughed head-on into Dr Richard Gipps’ Ford Ka on the A4260 at Tackley, north of Kidlington, on December 20, 2009.

Dr Gipps’ partner, Ellie Bongers, 32, a former acting head at Lord Williams’s School in Thame, and the couple’s 15-month-old son Joseph, both died in hospital.

Rundle, 72, had drunk a small whisky and a small glass of wine at lunch with her son David, a Liberal Democrat member of Oxford City Council, about two hours before the 4pm crash.

Yesterday at Oxford Crown Court, she was given a 12-month jail term, suspended for two years, and ordered to do 150 hours’ unpaid work and pay £1,500 costs.

Describing the moments before impact, Hilary Neville, prosecuting, said Dr Gipps “thought that at any second the driver would recognise what was occurring and pull back into their lane”.

Miss Neville said: “He considered his options, but decided to continue on the same path but did slam on the brakes. Ellie screamed, then there was the impact.”

A collision investigator estimated the Summertown, Oxford, family were travelling at about 30mph at the moment of impact. Marks on the road “clearly suggested that [Rundle] made no evasive steering actions or evading braking actions”.

The investigator’s statement added: “This crash has all the hallmarks of a driver falling asleep or suffering fatigue at the wheel or almost certainly gross inattention.”

Miss Bongers died on December 24 from a combination of her injuries and meningitis which developed in hospital. Her son died from his injuries on May 4 last year.

Rundle, of Oxford Road, Bodicote, near Banbury, admitted two counts of causing death by dangerous driving yesterday having previously denied the charges.

Police reported she was unable to give an adequate roadside breath test. A blood sample taken at 8pm revealed a blood-alcohol level of “less than 20 micrograms”. The legal driving limit is 80.

In police interview, Rundle said she could not remember anything for about three-quarters-of-a-mile before the crash.

Hugh Williams, defending, said: “She cannot say clearly enough her regret at their deaths.”

Judge Mary Jane Mowat said: “No penalty that the court can impose can ever recompense the person who has lost loved ones. This is a particularly difficult case because it is, in my experience, one where the culpability of the driver concerned is really as low as could be.”