Sister Alphonso was also convicted of force-feeding Helen Cusiter, now 43, pushing her from a swing and knocking her to the ground, which caused her teeth to break, dragging Patricia Milne, 44, into a corridor and smashing her into a radiator and hitting and force-feeding sweets to Grace Montgomery, 37.

Mrs Cusiter, a mother of two, who lived at Nazareth House in Aberdeen between the ages of 10 and 14, said: "The sentence is despicable after what she did to us. You might as well hold up a banner and say it is okay to beat your children."

Sentencing had been deferred for 10 days for medical reports on Sister Alphonso, who suffers from a heart condition. Sheriff Harris told her: "I have concluded that a term of imprisonment would not be an appropriate disposal. But for your age, state of health and lack of any convictions and time that has passed, I would have been minded to impose a term of imprisonment."

Outside the court Jim Hay, her lawyer, claimed that Sister Alphonso, who prefers to be known as Sister Marie, was an exemplary character. The Roman Catholic Church in Scotland could face having to pay out up to £8 million in compensation as more than 400 people, the majority who are former residents of Nazareth House homes, make civil claims for the treatment they claim they received.

Bishop Mario Conti, bishop for Aberdeen, said: "We can confidently restate that cruel and unnatural treatment did not form part of any official policy promoted or accepted by the Sisters or the Church, then or now. Nevertheless some actions are always wrong and we would be very sorry if even one left its mark on the lives of vulnerable individuals and had affected their sense of personal worth."