A woman who was jailed for illegally obtaining abortion tablets in the UK is to be released from prison.

45-year-old Carla Foster was handed a 28-month sentence in June; however, the UK Court of Appeal today reduced her sentence to 14 months suspended.

She will also have to complete 50 days of activity.

The mother-of-three had admitted illegally procuring her own abortion pills to end her pregnancy when she was between 32 and 34 weeks pregnant.

The termination was eight to 10 weeks later than the 24-week legal period for having an abortion in England, Scotland and Wales.

After she took the abortion pills, emergency services received a call to say she had gone into labour.

The baby was born not breathing and pronounced dead about 45 minutes later.

Foston Hall prison in Derbyshire, UK, where Carla Foster is being held ahead of her release.

At her sentence hearing, the court heard she was sent the drugs by the British Pregnancy Advisory Service (BPAS) after she called them during lockdown and lied about how far along her pregnancy was.

She has spent 35 days in Foston Hall Prison and the Court of Appeal heard she was refused any form of communication with her three children, one of whom is autistic, while in prison.

During the appeal, her barrister said there was a lack of "vital" reports into her mental health at the time of the offence and that "the obvious impact of the pandemic added to Ms Foster's already anxious state of mind".

Abortion Rights Protesters campaigning for abortion rights and the release of Carla Foster.

One of the three appeal court judges described the case as “very sad”.

“It is a case that calls for compassion, not punishment, and where no useful purpose is served by detaining Ms Foster in custody," said Justice Victoria Sharp.

After Ms Foster was sentenced last month, thousands of abortion rights activists marched from the UK's Royal Courts of Justice to government departments at Whitehall, demanding an end to the criminalisation of abortion.