Tyson Taylor (41) and his partner were put in charge of Coopers, in Bretton, Peterborough, by management company Billingford Bars, in July last year.

They were responsible for all aspects of running the pub, and did such a good job that the brewery which owned it were even seeking to take them on full time instead of employing them through the agency, Peterborough Crown Court heard.

But Taylor had been secretly keeping some of the cash to pay off his own credit card debts when he took the takings to the bank each week.

And he came unstuck when managers turned up unexpectedly for a stock check and to look at the books of the bar in the Copeland Centre, on November 23.

Prosecutor Cheryl Williams said £3,623 was found to be missing from the accounts.

Taylor pleaded guilty to theft from an employer, though argued the true figure was £3,025 because he had used some of the cash to pay for satellite television to be installed in the pub.

Mitigating, Hugh Vass said Taylor had run up debts of £7,000 after leaving prison in 2002.

He had served five-and-a-half years of an eight year sentence for a serious conviction which hampered his chances of getting work.

Mr Vass said Taylor, who now lives in Bedford, had been paying off the credit card and was hoping to eventually balance the books of the pub when business began booming.

The court heard that when the theft emerged Taylor had spent the day driving round the country and calling more than 20 people in a bid to borrow enough cash to pay the company back.

However, when that failed he agreed to hand himself in to police.

Judge Sean Enright jailed Taylor for 12 months.

The court heard a manager of Billingford Bars had taken property worth £5,000 from Taylor since the theft.

However, Judge Enright suggested the officer in the case should retrieve items belonging to Taylor's partner.