A single mum says she was kicked in the face by a man after being thrown out of a pub following an argument over her dancing style.

Gemma Heisley needed seven stitches in her mouth and fears she will be scarred for life after the night out – an attempt to cheer herself up after she suffered a miscarriage – ended in a hospital visit.

Police have confirmed they are investigating the alleged assault.

While dancing in The Crusader pub in Brookfield Road, South Ashford, in the early hours, Gemma says a friend told her a man was mimicking her dancing technique so the 29-year-old approached him with her glass roughly a third full of Jack Daniel’s and coke.

The shop worker, of South Ashford, said: “I threw the drink in his face. He went to the bar and bought a pint and tipped every last drop over my head. We exchanged words.

“Next thing I know I’m being kicked out of the pub.”

Gemma says she fell and banged her head as she was leaving and after that claims to have been kicked in the mouth by a man and hit in the face by a woman.

She admits shouting because she was angry as her house keys were still inside the pub but says she did not do anything to provoke either attack.

Workers at a nearby petrol station dialled 999 when Gemma walked in covered in blood and after speaking to police she was taken to the William Harvey Hospital for treatment.

She said: “I could literally dangle my lip about with my tongue where it was hanging off. There was a hole in my lip. I had to have three injections before they stitched it. It’s healing now and I’ve had the stitches out but I’m going to have a scar there.

“My whole face came out on one side and I couldn’t talk properly. I couldn’t even eat.

“I had to drink through a straw and have mashed potato and things like that.

“I don’t normally go out. I’d rather stay in and have a drink indoors but I’d had a miscarriage two days before and I was all depressed.

“I’d had a few to drink, I’m not going to lie, but I know what I did. I know I threw a drink over the man. I ended up on the floor twice, I think.”

The former North School pupil, who grew up in Ashford and only moved back in October after living in London for seven years, said the attack had also affected her 11-year-old son, Jimmy.

“He was scared when he saw my face and he started crying,” she said. “I’m not scared, I’ll stand up in court. I don’t want an apology and I don’t even care about compensation.

"He needs to pay for what he’s done by going to court. If he can do this to my lip what would happen if he kicked someone in the temple? He could kill someone.

“It’s not acceptable for a man to kick a woman. It’s just disgusting really.”

Ufuk Sen owns the Crusader and told the Kentish Express no one was assaulted within the pub premises the night Gemma Heisley was attacked.

He said: “Nothing happened to the girl inside the Crusader. A girl was very drunk and my staff refused to serve her any more. My manager told her to leave the pub. She went outside and I believe she fell.

“The police were called and they investigated. They spoke to me and I invited them to speak to any of my staff or customers. We showed them our CCTV and there was nothing there.

“We have a zero tolerance policy to trouble.”

Police confirmed they were called after Gemma Heisley was injured.

A spokesman said: "Police were called at 12.19am on Saturday, November 22 following a report a woman had been assaulted in Brookfield Road, Ashford. Inquiries are ongoing.”