A man from Pershore has been banned from driving for 18 months after refusing to give a sample to police after they found him behind the wheel of his van drinking beer on Christmas Eve.

James Birmingham, 37, was sat in his van outside St Nicholas’ School in Pinvin, on December 24 when police officers noticed he was holding the can of beer with his keys in the ignition and the engine running.

After removing him from the car, the officers decided to take him back to the police station rather than breathalyse him at the side of the road. Back at the police station he refused to give a sample for testing, saying no several times before eventually spending the night in a cell.

Worcester Magistrates Court heard he did not intend to drive the van after drinking the beer, and that he instead intended to walk to his brother’s house who lived nearby. He claimed he was sat in the van with the engine running because it was cold outside and he wanted to be in the warm.

Mark Seward, representing Birmingham, said: “He relies on his van as a landscape gardener and he is likely to to lose his customer base.

“His wife is also in ill health and has had several strokes and so he needs to take her to the hospital. They also have nine children whom they are responsible for.”

District Judge Nigel Cadbury banned Birmingham from driving for 18 months, ordering him to attend a drink driving course.

In total, Birmingham, who lives on a caravan site in Pinvin, was ordered to pay £415 in costs and compensation for the offence.